


Ashes From Fireworks

by hikarunara



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: M/M, demon lee chan, demon slayers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-21
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:28:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 11
Words: 43,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22330354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hikarunara/pseuds/hikarunara
Summary: The sound of the crunching snow beneath Seokmin's feet was barely audible above his loud breathing. The thin cold air was entering his lungs and causing them to burn, bringing tears to the male's eyes as he continued to run. He had to get to the bottom of the mountain, he had to find a doctor!The weight of Chan on his shoulders was slowing him down but he pushed through it,  because it didn't matter if he was in physical pain. Chan was still alive, his body was still warm when he found his family. And he was going to turn his brother back into a human if it was the last thing he does!"Chan! Please hang on! I don't know if you can hear me, but I'm getting us help! You just have to hang on!" He gasped out."Chan, please survive!"ORWhen Seokmin returns home for Chan's birthday to find his family slaughtered he vows to track down the demon that killed his family and turned Chan into one of them. After rigorous training Seokmin is joined by new friends and the demon slayer corps, a group of individuals who have vowed to slay all demons and protect the human race. With their help Seokmin will avenge his family and save his brother, no matter what it takes.
Relationships: Boo Seungkwan/Lee Chan | Dino, Jeon Wonwoo/Yoon Jeonghan, Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi/Lee Seokmin | DK, Wen Jun Hui | Jun/Xu Ming Hao | The8, just to name a few, this will be updated
Comments: 14
Kudos: 49





	1. Tragedy

The sound of the crunching snow beneath Seokmin's feet was barely audible above his loud breathing. The thin cold air was entering his lungs and causing them to burn, bringing tears to the male's eyes as he continued to run. He had to get to the bottom of the mountain, he had to find a doctor! 

The weight of Chan on his shoulders was slowing him down but he pushed through it, because it didn't matter if he was in physical pain. Chan was still alive, his body was still warm when he found his family. And he was going to turn his brother back into a human if it was the last thing he does!

"Chan! Please hang on! I don't know if you can hear me, but I'm getting us help! You just have to hang on!" He gasped out.

"Chan, please survive!"

\-------- 1 day earlier ---------

"Seokmin! Seokmin!"

The elder boy stopped in his tracks, turning around to the sound of his younger siblings calling his name. He smiled widely as they ran over to him and tackled him into a giant hug. "Chanhee, Jungmin, you both shouldn't be up this early!" He laughed, giving them a gentle chuckle before giving them a gentle hug.

"I want to come with you!" His sister, Chanhee said with wide eyes. 

Their mother emerged from the front door, a sad smile spreading over her features as she takes in what Seokmin is doing. "Do you really have to go now?" Jungmin asked Seokmin sadly. The elder laughed, patting his brother on the head. "I do, but I'll be back by tonight."

"I want to go with you!" Chanhee said again, her tiny hands balling into fists of determination. Seokmin saw the moment of fear enter his mother's eyes when she said that, knowing that what she was asking to do was dangerous. Seokmin looked back at his sister, smiling at her and giving one of her tiny little hands a squeeze. "You have to stay here Chanhee. You and Jungmin need to help me with a secret mission!"

Both of his younger siblings' eyes widened at the idea of having a secret mission assigned to them by their brother. Their mother gave a silent sigh of relief, ever since the passing of her husband over three years ago it's been hard raising all of the kids, having Seokmin take over as the breadwinner has really helped. 

"I need you both to set up for Chan's birthday tomorrow. When I come home we'll make a cake and get his presents all sorted!" Seokmin said excitedly. Chanhee and Jungmin grinned in excitement at their mission, causing Seokmin to laugh. "Do you think you two can handle that?" The two nodded happily and hugged their brother again, giving him a tight squeeze. Seokmin stood up and hugged his mother tightly, causing her to gasp slightly before hugging her son back.

"Just, be careful sweetie." She said quietly. Seokmin nodded and picked up his basket filled with charcoal. It was a long track down to the bottom of the mountain but Seokmin was determined to get home by nightfall. He definitely wanted to be there for Chan's birthday. 

"Be safe brother! Come home quickly!" Chanhee and Jungmin shouted as Seokmin waved goodbye and made his way to the trail that would lead him down the mountain. He stopped at the start of the trail when he saw his brother, Chan, emerge from the side of the house and jogged over to him with their baby sister strapped and sleeping to his back. 

"Seokmin! Are you heading out now?" Chan asked, giving him a gentle hug. Seokmin nodded, reaching around to pat his sister's head softly. "Yeah, I'll be back tonight and we can celebrate your birthday tomorrow!"

Chan sighed sadly, causing Seokmin to look at him worriedly. "What's wrong Chan?"

"Do you have to go? You know I don't like to be in charge here, I'm not strong like you." Chan asked. "I can't control Chanhee and Jungmin and Jimin is always crying while mom is overworked-"

"Hey hey, it's okay! You're just as great as I am when it comes to handling the family. Besides, it's just one day it's nothing you can't handle." He promised. 

Seokmin adjusted the strap to his basket and gave Chan's shoulder one final squeeze before turning and heading onto the trail, only stopping to wave to his brother one more time before disappearing in the tree line. 

His family didn't have it easy, after his father died Seokmin had to grow up and he had to grow up fast but he honestly wasn't upset by that. He was happy with life, he was proud of his siblings and he loved his mother more than anything. Which is why he had to hurry back for Chan's birthday.

He began jogging down the trail, hoping that he could get to the base of the mountain earlier so he could head back earlier. He didn't want to be late to celebrating Chan's birthday the next day and knew he needed to be home hopefully before dark. 

The smell of cooking food came to his nostrils first, it was part of the blessing for having such a keen sense of smell. Mrs. Nakamoto smiled when Seokmin emerged from the woods. He was already a bit tired from the trek down but pushed aside his feelings and waved at Mrs. Nakamoto as he asked further into town to deliver his charcoal to his regular buyers. 

Throughout the day he helped some people do various things, move heavy carts, weed gardens, and of course deliver his charcoal. By the end of the day he was exhausted but had more than enough to compensate for what he had done for everyone. 

The last stop he had was with Mr. Kim, a lifelong friend of the Lee family. "Here son, take some dumplings back up to your family. God knows your mother must be tired of cooking for so many children." He said with a chuckle. Seokmin laughed and took the food gratefully, bowing to the old man as he turned to leave. "Thank you Mr. Kim, I'll make sure to tell my mom you asked how she was." 

He placed the food in his basket and turned to head on the trail, the sun had long since set and he'd be heading up the mountain engulfed completely in darkness. He gave a small sigh and moved towards the entrance when the sound of someone calling his name made him stop.

"Lee Seokmin! Lee Seokmin! Are you leaving?!"

He stopped and turned to Mrs. Nakamoto who had emerged from her home and walked towards him, a gentle smile on her face. 

"Yes ma'am, I told my family I would be back tonight since it's Chan's birthday tomorrow." 

Mrs. Nakamoto smiled, giving Seokmin an almost sad look. "Really? Tell your brother I said happy birthday."

Seokmin nodded with a grin and bowed to the elder woman before turning to make his way up the mountain, her voice cutting into the small silence once again. "Seokmin, I can't let you go up the mountain. Not when it's dark and demons lurk outside. You can stay here tonight and leave as soon as the sun rises."

The boy looked back up at the mountain, already feeling guilty that he'd spent so much time down at the village and wasn't home with his family like he had promised. "It's a nice offer Mrs. Nakamoto but I told my family that I would be home tonight."

"It's not an offer Seokmin. You're staying here tonight and you can leave at first light."

He didn't feel like arguing. He watched as Mrs. Nakamoto walked into her home, leaving Seokmin outside. He glanced up at the mountain and sighed, how he wished he was home with his family right now. But with all of the stories he'd heard of demons from his family and the few that speak on them down here, he knew better than to travel alone at night. 

When he finally followed Mrs. Nakamoto into her home he realized how quiet it was, the familiar sounds of his friend Yuta coming from the other rooms was not present. "Mrs. Nakamoto, where's Yuta?" 

Mrs. Nakamoto set a bowl in front of Seokmin quietly, handing him some chopsticks before going to retrieve her own food and sit across from him. Seokmin blew on the food to cool it down before taking a big mouthful of the food, humming his appreciation. "Yuta left." She said, finally. 

Seokmin put his bowl down, his eyes widening after hearing that news. "Left? What do you mean left?"

Mrs. Nakamoto sighed, placing her own bowl down before continuing to talk. "I lied to Yuta about how his father died." She whispered. "I didn't want him to know the truth, he didn't need to know the truth, it was a horrible way he died and I didn't want Yuta to think the world was this horrible place but.....I don't know I suppose some kids here in town said something about the demons and Yuta started asking questions. I couldn't deflect them anymore and....he found out that his father died from a demon attack." 

Seokmin's eyes widened in shock, his mouth falling open a bit. A demon attack? How is it that Yuta and his mother were alive then? 

"His father died protecting us, I ran away with Yuta and we hid for hours. When I finally had the courage to return his father was dead, so I took my son and we came here."

The two sat in silence for a while, Seokmin knew that nothing he said could bring comfort for the loss of a loved one.

Nothing can replace those who you've lost.

Seokmin slept restlessly that night, he wasn't sure what it was but something was keeping him awake. Maybe it was the tales of demons from Mrs. Nakamoto, but the tales of demon slayers made him feel at ease after those. He really couldn't figure out why he couldn't sleep that night, why something was making him feel guilty for not returning home like he had promised.

He just knew he couldn't sleep that night.

When sunlight hit the floorboards the next morning Seokmin's eyes blinked open, heavy from not getting much sleep the night before. Mrs. Nakamoto helped him gather all of his things and pack them back into his basket, even giving him some treats for the kids for when he gets back. 

"Thank you Mrs. Nakamoto, when Yuta returns tell him I said hi!" Seokmin shouted over his shoulder as he turned and began heading back up the mountain. It was still early enough, he's sure the rest of his family are still sleeping. He'll sneak in and act like he'd been there the whole time.

This is great, he gets to celebrate with his family for Chan's birthday and it was going to be a good celebration. He smiled at the thought of Chan's surprised face seeing all of the treats he was bringing them. 

Because that's the great thing about his life. It's not perfect, it's far from it. And he knows that no matter how hard life gets, the world continues rotating on even if you're stuck in the same place. 

Seokmin stopped, his nostrils flaring at the sudden scent that surrounded him. 

_**Blood.** _

He didn't realize he was running until he was alright back home, his chest heaving from the thin cold air after he came to a stop.

Chan? Jimin? Seokmin covered his mouth with his hand, tears streaming down his face as he saw his younger siblings laying in the red stained snow. He rushed over to them, his hands landing on their backs shakily. He couldn't think straight, his mind was racing with questions as tears streamed down his face. "Chan....Mom?!" He said, his eyes raising to the busted down front door, he could see his mother's lifeless body slumped over the wall with Jungmin behind her. 

Seokmin's eyes then fell to Chanhee, her lifeless body laying beneath the table. "No..." Seokmin fell to his knees, his body shaking in anger and sadness as he saw his family's lifeless bodies. He turned back to Chan and Jimin, Chan's body was flung over Jimin's almost as if he had been protecting his younger sister. "I'm sorry...I'm so sorry." 

He put his hand to Chan's back and his eyes widened. He was warm. Without a second thought Seokmin scooped his brother up, flinging him over his shoulder and running towards the trail down the mountain. 

The sound of the crunching snow beneath Seokmin's feet was barely audible above his loud breathing. The thin cold air was entering his lungs and causing them to burn, bringing tears to the male's eyes as he continued to run. He had to get to the bottom of the mountain, he had to find a doctor! 

The weight of Chan on his shoulders was slowing him down but he pushed through it, because it didn't matter if he was in physical pain. Chan was still alive, his body was still warm when he found his family. And he was going to turn his brother back into a human if it was the last thing he does!

"Chan! Please hang on! I don't know if you can hear me, but I'm getting us help! You just have to hang on!" He gasped out.

"Chan, please survive!"

He kept pushing himself, he couldn't let his pain prevent him from saving Chan. A roar in his ear startled him as Chan suddenly began moving, a loud growl emitting from his mouth. "Chan! Chan, wait!"

Seokmin felt his foot slip on the edge of the cliff, he tried regaining his footing but Chan was working against him and caused him to flip and fall. He shouted loudly, grasping at air as his back landed on the snow with a loud thud. 

When his eyes finally opened he gasped, his eyes darting around as he came to his senses. 

Chan!

He quickly got to his feet and looked around, his vision still blurry from the fall as his eyes landed on his younger brother who was a few feet away. "Chan! Chan are you okay? You have to hang on okay, I'll get you to a doctor." He said quickly, running to his brother. Chan growled as his brother came closer to him, finally looking up and locking eyes with him. Seokmin gasped when he saw his brother. His eyes were no longer kind and sweet like what he was used to seeing. Now he was met with eyes that burned like fire and looked upon him with anger. 

"Chan- OOF!" Seokmin stumbled and fell onto his back as Chan lunged at him, knocking him to the ground. "Chan! Chan no please!" Seokmin begged as his brother flashed his fangs at him. He grabbed the axe he'd had to his side and brought it up just in time to force the handle between his brother's incredibly sharp teeth. Chan's growls were growing louder now as he continued to try and fight his brother off of him. 

"Chan! I know you can hear me!" Seokmin sobbed, tears streaming down his face as his younger brother tried desperately to rip him to shreds. But this wasn't his brother, this wasn't the sweet Chan that he knew. Chan had to fight this, he just had to.

"Chan, you have to fight this! I know you're in there, please!" He shouted, his cries drowning out all the sounds around him, including the footsteps of the boy running through the forest. In Seokmin's defense, the boy had no footprints. Each step was silent as he ran quickly through the snow, jumping suddenly with his sword drawn aiming right for his younger brother.

Seokmin felt a tear fall on top of his own and gasped, eyes wide when he saw those kind eyes looking down at him. Chan's eyes. 

"Chan!" He choked out, pushing his brother out of the way and rolling to the side with him in his arms. The slice of the sword was loud as it cut past Seokmin, barely missing him. With a thud Seokmin's back his a tree, Chan laying in his arms as the other boy's sword hit the ground and cause a loud echo through the trees.

With a heaving chest Seokmin stared at the boy wide eyed, his hands protectively holding onto his brother. The stranger stood, his face expressionless as he took in the sight before him.

A human protecting a demon? What could be the cause of this?  
  


"Why are you protecting that thing?" He asked, his voice was cold and authoritative. Seokmin hadn't heard someone speak like that ever, especially not someone who looked so young. He was too busy thinking that over that he didn't even catch him calling Chan a thing.

"He's my baby brother." Seokmin said, standing and grabbing Chan as he struggled against his hold. 

"That thing is not your brother." The male said coldly.

"Stop calling him a thing! His name is Lee Chan and he's my brother!" Seokmin spat. 

The male looked at Seokmin in confusion before aiming his sword directly at him, eyes narrowing towards the pair. "Your brother is not your brother, he's a demon and he must be killed!" 

Seokmin's eyes widened as he took a step in front of his brother, tightening his grip on the handle to his axe. If it came down to it, Seokmin would die to protect his younger brother. 

Almost like a flash Seokmin was pushed, his back slamming against the tree and knocking the wind out of him. His eyes watered as he stumbled forward, trying to catch his breath when he saw the stranger have a hold on Chan tightly. Chan growled and struggled against the male's hold and Seokmin's eyes widened, how did he get Chan so easily? How did he move so fast? Who was this guy?! That's when his eyes fell onto the blade that the stranger wielded. 'Destroy' was engraved along the side. 

A demon slayer.

"Wait! Please!" Seokmin reached out towards the stranger, his throat tightening at the sight in front of him. "Please, my entire family was slaughtered, but Chan survived!"

"He will kill you and anyone else who stands in his way! He's a demon!" The stranger shouted. 

"He's my brother! Chan wouldn't eat a human, I won't let him. I'm going to turn him back into a human!" Seokmin promised, dropping to his knees in a begging motion. "I've lost my other family members, my mother, I can't lose Chan too." He bowed his head, his forehead falling to the snow as his tears fell from his eyes. "Please. Please don't kill my brother."

The slayer tensed at Seokmin's begging, his eyes narrowing in anger as he pointed his sword at the younger male. "Begging will do nothing for you!" He shouted.

Seokmin looked up in surprise at the male's outburst, his hands balling into tiny fists in the snow. "But, but I'll avenge my family-"

"Avenge your family?! on't make me laugh! You are weak, you can't even protect your brother! I took him easily away from you and you didn't even try and stop me, instead you kept your back to me when I tried to kill him! I could have killed you both in one swing you ignorant fool!" The stranger bellowed. 

Seokmin wiped the tears from his eyes, standing up as the stranger yelled at him. Seokmin was no fool and he would avenge his family, who did this guy think he was?

"You aren't nearly strong enough to defend your brother, don't bother trying to avenge your family." Without another word the stranger sunk his sword into Chan's shoulder, earning an audible noise of pain to come from the young demon. 

Seokmin shouted angrily, turning and running to the left in a circle around the slayer who had since removed the sword from Chan. He threw a rock at the older boy who dodged it easily with no expression readable on his face as he dodged even more rocks thrown at him. A frown played onto his face when Seokmin came towards him, shouting what could only be described as a war cry while charing towards him.

Idiot.

The slayer lifted his sword and brother the end down, slamming it between the boy's shoulder blades and causing him to fall to the ground out cold. Wait, the axe. Where was the axe?! The sound came first, swooshing through the air and coming straight for his head, barely missing him as it landed securely in the tree next to him. The slayer's eyes widened in surprise when he realized what had happened. Seokmin never had the axe in his hand, he knew he could defeat the slayer so he tried to take him out when his guard was down. He was too busy staring at Seokmin's still form that his grip loosened too much and Chan broke away, kicking the male to the right and lunging towards his brother's motionless body. 

Shit. He'd been too distracted, now that demon was going to eat his own brother!

The slayer stepped forward, his sword ready to slice Chan's head clean off with one swing when he paused, eyes widening in shock. That demon wasn't eating his brother, he was protecting him. 

Chan crouched in front of Seokmin, growling and glaring at the slayer as he hovered over his brother. 

This demon and this human, such an unlikely pair that he typically wouldn't see. There was something about these two.

He didn't have time to think much because Chan had lunged towards him, kicking and pushing his hand out to scratch the slayer. He was able to dodge the attacks easily, managing to put his sword back and raise his hand, hitting the demon right in the throat and knocking him out instantly. 

A brother duo, one human and one a demon. The slayer hadn't seen something like this in all his years of being in the game. He looked at the two and sighed, he knew what he had to do. 

_"Seokmin! Seokmin! You have to wake up!" The echoing voices of his younger siblings filled his ears. Seokmin climbed to his knees shakily, eyes looking up and meeting those of his mother's. "Mom?" He asked sadly, tears brimming his eyes._

_"Seokmin, you have to wake up." She managed to choke out. Seokmin looked to his left, eyes falling on those of his dead siblings who looked at him with sad smiles. "Am I dead?" Seokmin asked._

_"No, you're sleeping." His mother replied, reaching out and caressing her son's cheek. "I need you to wake up sweetie. Protect, Chan." She whispered. Seokmin leaned into his mother's touch, sobbing quietly as his mother spoke. "Wake up Seokmin."_

_"Wake up."_

Seokmin woke with a gasp, the cold air burning his lungs as he took a deep breath and coughed. He reached out, grabbing Chan's garments when he realized his brother unconscious and next to him. 

"Good, you're awake."

Seokmin sat up, eyes falling onto the unnamed male who was now leaning up against the tree. From this angle he could admire the boy's figure. He was tall and lean with a waist so small that Seokmin was insanely jealous. 

"You didn't kill him?" Seokmin asked as he examined his brother intensely. 

"No. I muzzled him." The male said, taking a step towards the pair. Once again, his feet left no crunching sound as he walked towards them and his face held no expression. "Go to the base of the Gyebangsan Mountain, there's a man there names Han Seong-su who will help you." The male said sternly. "I will tell him you're on your way and who you are." 

Seokmin looked at the male in confusion, opening his mouth to speak but could only gasp when the male was suddenly no longer there. He collected his axe and his brother and headed home, knowing what he had to do. He buried his family, giving them a short service as he remembered their smiling faces one last time. 

"I'm sorry mom, Jimin, Chanhee, Jungmin. I should have been here to protect you." Seokmin sobbed over their graves. "I promise, I'll watch over Chan and avenge your deaths." And he knew he would, the scent the demon had left behind was different and so specific, he knew he would never forget that scent for as long as he lived. 

Seokmin stood up, taking Chan's hand and gave it a squeeze. "Come on Chan, it's time to go." He said sadly, leading the way back towards the woods and to their next destination. Seokmin stopped and turned back to his home one more time. There were so many memories here, it was sad that it would be left with such a horrible event. Seokmin's attention turned to Chan who was tugging on his hand and pointing to the trail. 

"You're right Chan, we better go."

And so Seokmin set off on his adventure. It was the start of the hardest events of his life and he would be tested with every fiber of his being. He would win, lose, cry and watch some of his best friends die. He was in no way prepared for that, but he had no choice. Because when life deals you a blow it will go on, even if you're not ready to. 

With a determined look adorning his face Seokmin set out for Gyebangsan Mountain, his journey was just getting started. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you guess who the unnamed demon slayer is? He'll be revealed in the next chapter!


	2. Weak

The next few days held nothing but sleepless nights and long days. Seokmin quickly learned that Chan couldn't walk in the sunlight for fear of dying, so the pair could only walk at night. This made the traveling harder but Seokmin was determined to reach that mountain. 

Somewhere along the way he had found a cave and allowed Chan to stay in there with him and sleep. When the sun rose the next morning Seokmin was still awake, looking at Chan with a saddened expression as his younger brother slept peacefully deep in the cave and away from the sunlight.

"I promise you, Chan, I'll turn you back into a human." He murmured. 

With a heavy heart Seokmin left the cave and headed towards the small town a few miles away. He figured he could purchase some food and something to keep Chan out of the sunlight so they could travel during the day as well. It just didn't seem real, having a brother who was no longer the brother he was so used to having. This was no longer the little brother who would be out with him in the field chopping wood until they were called in, this was a boy who craved blood and flesh....those from a human.

But he was not a monster. Seokmin refused to believe that Chan was a monster and that he couldn't be helped. He'd find a way to turn Chan back into a human if it was the last thing he ever did. 

He came across a small farm just on the edge of the town, an elderly couple were out doing chores for the day as Seokmin approached them slowly. "Excuse me. I'm sorry to interrupt, if it's not too much trouble do you have some type of basket I can use?" 

The older man looked to his wife who simply nodded and continued with what she was doing. The husband stood and went to the side of their small house, grabbing a larger basket that was clearly worn. 

"I apologize. This is the best we have." He said, handing it to Seokmin.

"Thank you! This will work great!" Seokmin said happily as the elderly woman came to where the two stood with her hands full of bamboo. "Use these to patch it, it will also make it stronger." She encouraged.

They were so nice! And to him, a stranger no less. Seokmin bowed deeply before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small amount of change, it was all he had to his name at this point.

"Please, take this as a thank you."

The woman shook her head, pushing his hand away. "No son, thank you for being so polite." She said with a smile. 

Seokmin bowed again before turning and heading back to the cave, basket in tow. Once he reached the entrance he knelt down with a smile and held up the basket proudly. Only Chan wasn't there, instead a small pile of dirt was in the middle of the cave much to Seokmin's surprise and confusion.

"Chan?" He whispered sharply as he peered inside. 

A small head poked up from a hole in the ground and Seokmin was met with Chan's kind eyes looking back at him. 

"Ah, you look so small." Seokmin commented, sitting back and going to work on repairing the basket. "We need to move during the day as well, I want to get to the base of the mountain as quickly as possible." He worked quickly to patch the basket quickly, his mind wandering to the male back in the forest on the mountain.

He'd run quietly through snow, had he not heard his sword being drawn Seokmin is sure he wouldn't have known he was there. He had such a serious face, one that showed years of hardship. He was a demon slayer for sure. Seokmin shuddered at the idea of the male having almost killed Chan as he looked back to his younger brother who was watching him curiously. Seokmin knew the best way to find out how to save Chan would be to become just like that demon slayer, but could he justify killing other demons while his brother was one?

He must have been really focused in his thoughts because he practically jumped when Chan snuggled close to him. He couldn't help but smile as Chan moved into the basket and got comfortable. 

"I promise you Chan, I'll figure this out."

\-----------------

Seokmin was lucky that he'd carried so much firewood, it made carrying Chan in the basket that much easier and they could travel during the day. This went on until they reached the base of the Gyebangsan Mountain after fourteen long days of travel. Seokmin was exhausted and more than anything just wanted to rest, and he's sure Chan was growing tired of traveling as well. 

When sun set and darkness began to settle Seokmin had come to the small town at the base of the village, discovering that Seong-su's home was a ways up the mountain. Since the sun had set Seokmin allowed Chan out of the basket so he could walk along side him. 

Seokmin's mind was wandering towards memories of his family, of their smiles and laughs only for the horrific images of their brutal deaths to take place of those memories. Lucky for him his nose caught whiff of the scent of blood and brought him back to his reality. 

The pair stop and look around, Seokmin's eyes falling onto a house a few yards off the path they stood on.

"Someone's in trouble!" Seokmin said, hand tightening on his axe as he ran towards the house with his brother right behind.

The scent of blood increased greatly as he ran up the steps, his hand shaking when he swung the door open and was met with a grueling scene. 

Laying in the doorway was the lifeless body of a young man, a look of terror clearly readable across his face. Seokmin couldn't help but feel sad for the male when the sound of a small groan captured his attention. He turned and looked in horror into the eyes of another young male who was very much still alive, though he was fading fast. Hunched over him was a larger man, skin grey in color who looked like he was doing something to the male's shoulder. 

"Help....me...." The stranger begged softly in a strained and weak voice. 

Seokmin dared to take a step forward but stopped when a deep chuckle came from hunched over figure. The hair on the back of Seokmin's neck stood up in fear as the figure stood up to his full height and Seokmin realized he had to be three times his size. Out of reflex he stood in front of his brother, holding the axe in front of him for protection.

The figure chuckled as he turned to the pair and Seokmin's eyes widened in realization of what he had been doing. The moaning man had slumped forward, his shirt turned dark from the blood that had been soaked into it and there was a huge bite in his shoulder. 

They had stumbled upon a feeding demon. 

"You should have known....this is my domain." The demon said in a sultry voice, his red eyes bore down onto the two brothers in mild anger. "What are two humans doing out alone like this? Looking for trouble? Hmm?" He asked.

Seokmin couldn't help but tremble at the voice but was determined to not look as scared as he felt. "Who the hell do yo-" With a thud Seokmin was sent flying backwards through the air, the wind knocked out of him as he landed harshly onto the hard ground with a grunt. 

He laid there, dazed and confused for a moment before the light from the moon was blocked by the tall demon lunging himself high into the air to land on top of him. Without a second thought Seokmin grabbed his axe and held it horizontally just in time for the demon's sharp teeth to wrap around it's handle and stop him from tearing his face into pieces. 

Seokmin struggled visibly as he tried to fight off the demon, knowing full well that he was ten times stronger than Chan was when he first attacked him. "Chan!!" Seokmin shouted in fear.

Chan stood rooted in his current position, staring at the two dead men in front of him. The smell of their flesh was making his mouth salivate and he curled his fingers into fists in order to fight the urge to help himself to the other demon's left overs. 

The urge was strong though, it would be so easy to give in and rip the bamboo nuzzle the stranger from the forest had give him and dig into the two victims. It was Seokmin's fear filled voice that pulled Chan from his trance and made him turn to his brother. 

Seokmin could feel his arms growing weaker by the second as the demon only grew more and more strong. Suddenly, as quickly as he'd been thrown to his back the demon was gone......or rather his head was gone. 

Chan stood on Seokmin's right, his leg lifted in the air showing he'd been the one to kick his head clean off. Seokmin's eyes widened as he scrambled to move away from the rest of the body, the rest of the body that was still moving and it was heading straight for his brother.

"Chan! Look out!" he screamed.

The young demon dodged the body just in time, skidding back until he was next to Seokmin once again. 

"Oy! You didn't say he was a demon!"

Seokmin's eyes widened when he saw the demon's head speak directly at him, his mouth dropping open in surprise.

H-how? How was it talking?!

Arms began spurting out and the head was able to crawl towards the pair, much to Seokmin's disgust. Suddenly the head launched itself towards them, Chan was able to dodge it again only to be hit by the headless body and be flung against a tree. 

"Chan!" Seokmin shouted. He took a step towards his brother when he sensed something coming towards him, he turned and lifted his axe just in time for the demon head to wrap it's hands around the handle once again. 

Out of the corner of his eye Seokmin saw Chan run into the nearby trees after the headless body, his first instinct was to run after him but he was preoccupied by the talking head that was doing it's best to bite into his flesh.

"I'll devour you! I'll start with your nose, then your eyes! Then I'll devour the rest of your pretty little face!" The demon snarled. Fear shot through Seokmin's spine at those words, his eyes widening at them. He couldn't die, not here, not without Chan, not without saving him. 

"Get off of me!" Seokmin shouted, pushing back against the demon with all he had, flinging the axe towards a tree and pinning the demon against it. 

It was then that Seokmin could really get a look at the demon, his sharp nails were clawing the air as it demanded Seokmin come closer to him. His teeth were razor sharp, he could see the veins popping out of his forehead.....and he stunk to high heaven. It was a rotten smell, one that made Seokmin realize that this demon was rotten to the core. 

He heard a snap behind him and instinctively he turned around ready to defend himself when he saw Chan come stumbling back from the tree line. "Chan!" Seokmin ran over to his brother and caught him as he stumbled into his arms. There were cuts on his forehead, his breathing was shallow and he felt weak. "Oh Chan, I'm sorry." He said with tear filled eyes. He heard the snicker of the demon and turned his head towards him, eyes filled with rage. 

"You bastard human that's what you get for traveling with a demon! Come over here so I can finish you off!" He commanded. 

Seokmin let Chan go, the young demon crawling towards the house as Seokmin walked slowly towards the demon.

"You need to finish him."

Seokmin jumped at the foreign voice, turning around and screaming when he saw a strange man standing behind him wearing a goblin mask. "Who are you?!" He asked, though a small part of him already knew who he was. 

"Kill him, he cannot live." The stranger said again. 

At his words Seokmin turned back to the snarling demon, he knelt down and grabbed a big rock that was close to him. Was he really going to have to bash his head in? Seokmin couldn't do that.

The stranger watched as Seokmin hesitated in killing the demon, a small sigh escaping his lips. If he couldn't even kill this demon there was no way he would ever become a demon slayer, perhaps Wonwoo was wrong. This boy clearly wasn't meant to be fighting, let alone killing demons. 

The letter the young demon slayer had written to him was one of urgency, he'd even sent it with his own personal crow. The older male turned and looked towards the destroyed house, he could see the small demon that accompanied the human hiding back in the shadows. 

This wasn't going to work.

The sun rose above the tree line and began shining down on them. The stranger looked back towards the tree that held the snarling demon. It began screaming in agony as soon as the sun hit its skin and disintegrated before their eyes. 

Seokmin let the rock fall from his hands gratefully, allowing to release a sigh of relief. 

Chan!

The male turned and ran towards the house where he could see Chan in the corner. Slipping on some of the spilled blood he practically crashed into his brother who had been hiding in the corner. His eyes were closed, his breath was steady but shallow, he wouldn't wake up. 

"Chan?! Chan! Chan wake up please!" Seokmin begged. 

"He's sleeping."

The older male looked up to the stranger, tears brimming his eyes at his words. "He has to wake up, please." 

Seong-su looked at Seokmin in distaste, he sighed before kneeling down next to the young male. "We need to go, now." He urged.

Seokmin nodded and wrapped Chan up in his arms before putting him back into the basket he carried with him wherever they went. Seong-su watched as Seokmin stood up and prepared to gather himself, he could see the difference that Wonwoo had written to him about. Perhaps there was something this kid and his brother could do, even if one of them was a demon. 

"Where are we going?" Seokmin asked finally.

Seong-su looked at the male as if he'd asked a seriously dumb question, though Seokmin couldn't tell since his face was hidden behind that goblin mask. He had to admit, this man was a bit intimidating, maybe it was how he stood or maybe it was how he kept his tone so neutral behind that scary looking mask. 

"It's time to start your training."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was a shorter chapter! sorry for having you wait so long to get an update on this, hopefully life has calmed down enough I can actually update you guys more frequently.


	3. Years of Training

Chan slept the entire walk to Seong-su's house halfway up the mountain, much to Seokmin's concern. Even when they reached the house and Seokmin had placed him into a ready made bed Chan didn't move an inch, just simply continued to sleep like a small child. 

Seokmin closed the door to the room they would share and turned to his teacher, his body ached from the beating he'd received from the demon and more than anything he just wanted to rest. 

"I'm sorry we arrived so late." Seokmin said, bowing low to his teacher. Even though he was aching, Seokmin knew better than to disrespect the elder, especially since he was going to be his teacher from this day forward.

"I figured the time would be about now when you arrived. Wonwoo said you seemed punctual." 

Wonwoo? Ah, the boy from the forest. Come to think of it, Seokmin didn't remember if he'd ever given his name. "Yes sir. My name is Seokmin, that's my brother Chan." He replied, glancing back towards the now closed door.

"Seokmin, I'm sure you're tired. But we don't have time to waste. If you wish to become a demon slayer then you need to begin your training immediately."

A demon slayer? Seokmin paused, looking down at the ground as he thought about it. Becoming a demon slayer would mean that he would hunt the very thing that his brother had become, could he really condition himself to kill something? To kill something that was once human? On the same token, hunting these demons would bring him closer to finding a cure for Chan...and avenging his fallen family.

He closed his fist, raising his head to look at Seong-su with determination in his eyes. "I'm ready."

"Good! We start now."

Seokmin's face fell. Now? When he was so tired?

He followed the older gentleman outside and towards the woods, the trail they took had them heading higher up the mountain side and Seokmin was able to fully appreciate the view as the minutes ticked off towards hours.

"Sir? That boy you mentioned before, Wonwoo, he's a demon slayer correct?" Seokmin asked curiously. 

Seong-su grunted in reply, nodding a bit. "Wonwoo is more than a demon slayer, he's one of the top demon slayers alive today."

Seokmin's eyes widened when he heard that, that boy was a top demon slayer? It made sense, Seokmin hadn't detected his scent had it not been for looking over Chan's shoulder. It was only then that he realized they weren't alone. And he'd managed to grab Chan when Seokmin wasn't paying attention, those were definitely skills that were more advanced than what Seokmin had ever seen.

It was only after his inner dialogue did Seokmin realize his teacher had been talking to him the whole time, he went red in the face from embarrassment when he saw the older man looking over his shoulder at him. 

"Sorry, what were you saying?"

"I said Wonwoo is the water pillar of the demon slayer corps. He's the strongest swordsman I've ever trained."

Wow, so this guy could train him to be just like Wonwoo then.

"I know what you're thinking." Seokmin's eyes widened when his teacher addressed him. Suddenly stopping and looking back at the boy. "You think you'll become just like him with my training."

"Well..." Seokmin started.

"Well nothing. Wonwoo earned that status through hard training and dedication to his craft. A lot of it he did by diligently working on his own. It will take you a long time before you can even think of becoming a pillar, until then you will work tirelessly every day until I believe that you're ready."

Seokmin nodded, his face cast down in a deflated look. 

"Yes sir."

Seong-su nodded and continued walking, Seokmin following wordlessly behind him. Still, Seokmin couldn't help but think of how incredible Wonwoo was and he hadn't even really seen him use his full potential. Seokmin wondered, if he continued his training, if he could become a water pillar as well.

"How many water pillars are there?" He asked.

"One. There is one pillar for each category, pillars can take on successors but only when they are ready to give that title over or when they die does their successor take over. Even then, a successor must go through brutal training as well as meet the requirements to become a pillar before they are given the title."

Wow, so the pillars are crazy good then.

They spent most of the hike in silence, honestly Seokmin was fighting his fatigue by the time they reached their destination, a small clearing where he could finally catch his breath. He hoped Chan was doing okay, he would be lying if he said he wasn't worried leaving his brother alone in such a strange place. 

"Here we are."

Seokmin looked around, there was nothing particularly special about this place. It was big enough to do some basic combat training but otherwise it wasn't anything to write home about.

"So, are we starting with the basics?" Seokmin asked excitedly.

"Yes. We're starting with your breathing."

Seokmin looked at his teacher confused, looking around as if he was being punked. "My breathing? What's wrong with my breathing?"

"You need to learn how to build your lung capacity up. When fighting demons endurance will help you the most. You need to be in physically good condition to take on a demon and even then that won't always help you."

"Okay....so how do I do that?" Seokmin asked curiously.

Seong-su grinned and pointed to another trail a few yards away from the one they had climbed to get to this spot. Seokmin looked to where his finger was pointing in confusion, it looked like a regular trail.

"You're going to run back down the mountain. If you make it before the sun sets then I'll treat you to a big meal. Otherwise you'll be stuck here on the mountain in the middle of the dark."

Seokmin's eyes widened at how easy the instructions were and gave a confident grin. "Sounds easy enough! I'll even race you down!" And with that he took off running down the new trail, leaving Seong-su in his dust.

"He'll learn soon enough." Seong-su said as he turned back the way they came.

Seokmin felt confident in how well he was doing, running and jumping over fallen trees and logs as he raced down the mountain. He felt like he could continue on like this and make it back in record time without a problem. Or so he thought. Just as he'd grown confident enough to smile through his fatigue he tripped over a wire that ended up launching a log from his left. It hit him square in the shoulder and sent him flying through the trees and knocking the wind out of him.

"Fuck." He breathed, wincing at the pain. He hadn't expected that.

He got up, legs wobbling a bit before he took off again, hoping to miss any other booby traps set up along the path. In short, he had his ass handed to him. By the time he made it to the base of the mountain it has long been dark and Seokmin was practically dragging himself towards the cabin door where Seong-su and Chan would be located. 

Seong-su was waiting outside for the young male who collapsed right at his feet. 

"You're late." He said simply.

Seokmin looked at him with an incredulous look, because he couldn't be serious right? Seokmin had worked his ass to get down the mountain and that's all he could say? "You didn't tell me it would have a bunch of traps set up!" Seokmin argued after he caught his breath.

"Demons won't go easy on you in the real world. Many will come at you at once, you need to learn to be aware of your surroundings while also not being able to be tracked yourself."

Seokmin sighed in frustration, as much as he wanted to argue he knew that Seong-su was right. If he was going to become a good demon slayer he needed to be trained by the best and do what was asked of him.

"Tomorrow you will do it again. And again until I believe that you are prepared for the next phase of your training." Seong-su said as he led Seokmin inside. He handed him a bowl of food and Seokmin took it eagerly. He practically inhaled his food as Seung-su cleaned up a little bit.

"Seokmin."

The younger male looked up as his cheeks were puffed out with food, eyes landing on his teacher who had sat down across from him. "This training, it will be brutal. I will push you until you are ready to break and at times you may hate me. But understand that the world you are entering in to is unfair and harsh, I will need you to be as strong as you can be."

Seokmin mulled over Seong-su's words and nodded slowly as he set down his bowl, a new look of determination was settled into his eyes.

He said his goodnight and made his way into the room Seong-su had prepared for him, Chan was sleeping soundly on his own bed and Seokmin paused to look at the male with a gentle smile before sitting down at the desk in the corner. "You've been asleep all day Chan, I hope you're okay. I'm going to start my training soon and i'll write it all down for you." He said softly, glancing at his brother before grabbing a pen and beginning to write.

_Dear Chan,_

_Seong-su had me run down the mountain again, it feels like it gets harder every day. I keep falling off the side or sliding down into even more traps, and they get more difficult the more I figure them out! You haven't woken up yet, i'm starting to worry. Seong-su says that it's fine and that you must be healing yourself but I can't help but be concerned. I want to know what you're dreaming of, what goes through your mind as you lay there? I hope you wake up soon, until then I will continue writing to you._

_Sincerely yours,_

_Seokmin_

_Dear Chan,_

_It's been a couple of months now, Seong-su has let me start running with a wooden sword these days. It slowed me down at first but i've gotten the hang of it. Honestly the hardest part is dodging the new traps he is always setting up every day. I've done my best to master it but it's so hard Chan. I wish you could train with me, Seong-su thinks you would be a good demon slayer but I told him you may be too young. I still think of you as my baby brother after all. You haven't opened your eyes once, Seong-su has been keeping an eye on you but I can't help but think that something is wrong. When will you wake up Chan? When?_

_Sincerely yours,_

Seokmin

"Seokmin."

The male opened his heavy eyes slowly at the voice coming from above him. Seong-su peered down and placed a hand on his shoulder gently. "Come with me."

Seokmin obeyed, sitting up in bed and rubbing his eyes. He glanced over at the desk at the stack of letters written to his brother, his brother who lay motionless and dead asleep in the bed on the other side of the room.

With a sigh Seokmin crawled out of bed and followed Seung-su outside, sleep was begging him to go back to bed but he knew that if he was going to be up at this ungodly hour then it must be important. He was lead to a large clearing and sat on a tree stump off to the side while Seong-su unloaded the long clothed bag he had brought with them. Just as Seokmin had felt himself drifting off Seong-su cleared his throat, prompting the young male to stiffen and open his eyes forcefully.

"It's time you begin training with a real sword."

Seokmin's eyes widened as he was handed the steel blade, it felt heavy as he held it in his left hand.

Seong-su motioned for Seokmin to get up and come to the center of the clearing and he did so, letting the sword remain at his side so he could get used to how it felt in his hand. "Attack me."

Seokmin chocked a bit at his words, a sudden bolt of fear shooting through him. Seong-su was a fully trained demon slayer and Seokmin had never held a sword before. They were clearly not the same!!!

Still, the young male was determined to find a cure for his brother, he'd be damned if Chan remained a demon forever. With a small grunt Seokmin took his stance and held the sword between his hands, pointing it directly at Seong-su. His teacher didn't say anything, just raised a hand and motioned for the other to come forward and attack him. With a loud cry Seokmin did just that, charging directly at Seong-su and holding his sword high above his head, he swung the blade downward and caught nothing but air. He gasped in surprise when Seong-su came up beside him and kneed him directly in the gut.

Dropping to his knees Seokmin gasped for air and clutched his abdomen, his left hand dropping the blade so he could steady himself as he tried to regain his breath. He felt tears sting his eyes as another blow was brought between his shoulder blades that caused him to fall flat onto the ground. He lay motionless for a moment before a kick was given to his right side that sent him flying to the edge of the clearing and hitting a try, the wind knocking right out of his lungs upon impact.

"Get up!" Seong-su demanded, slashing his sword through the air.

"A demon will not give you time to rest. If you lay still long enough they will devour you!"

Seokmin stood up, wincing at the pain that shot through his body but he did his best to ignore it. He needed to prove he could do this, if he didn't he's sure he'd be sent home.

Home.

His mind flashed to the freshly dug graves of his family, to the family he wasn't there to protect. Then it moved on to Chan, Chan and his wondering eyes that held so much hope, Chan who was now a demon and had been sleeping for months, Chan who he had to find a cure for.

Seokmin was hit again, and again....and again. He was doubled over the stump he'd taken a rest on in the beginning, blood trickling down from his temple as he gasped for air. Meanwhile Seong-su of course hadn't even broken a sweat it was ridiculous. "When you can block my attacks, you can move on." Seong-su said as the sun had begun to set for the day.

"Stay here until you can master the sword. I will watch over Chan and bring you food, but until you can challenge me you will stay out here."

Without another word Seong-su left the clearing, leaving Seokmin alone with his thoughts, his deep and dark thoughts.

It took five months for Seokmin to get semi good at wielding a sword. It took him another five before he felt confident enough to challenge Seung-su in combat. Of course that only resulted him in getting his ass kicked.

"It's almost been a year and you still can't beat me. Do better Seokmin." He scolded.

Seokmin did just that, six months later Seokmin challenged Seong-su again and this time he blocked every attack that was thrown at him, Seong-su didn't allow him to land any blows on him either but still, it was great that Seokmin had come so far.

"I can move on right? I blocked your attacks so I can move on." Seokmin said proudly, giving his teacher a giant grin.

Seong-su frowned in his direction and sighed, it's true he'd said that to Seokmin over a year ago. He just didn't anticipate that he would actually make it this far. "Come with me." He instructed as he walked down a path that Seokmin hadn't noticed until now. The sun had faded behind the mountains and now the moon had cast its glow down on them, Seokmin kept his eyes ahead of him as he followed his teacher in silence. The entire time his mind wondered how Chan was doing, if he was awake and waiting for him to come back.

"Seokmin, the next step into becoming a demon slayer would be natural selection. Have you heard of it?" Seong-su asked as he came to an abrupt halt in front of the younger male.

The younger simply shook his head, he hadn't bothered to learn much about the demon slayers until he'd decided to become one. "Natural selection is the final phase before you become a demon slayer. You have to survive a week in a forest that is littered with demons, the only other people there are future demon slayer hopefuls."

Seokmin nodded slowly, trying to picture what something like that would even look like.

"And you think i'm ready to go to natural selection?" He asked finally.

"No."

Seokmin looked down deflated until he felt Seong-su tap his shoulder. "If you want to go to natural selection I must suggest you for it. And you have one more task before I will consider doing that for you." He said, pointing in front of them. Seokmin's eyes followed the direction he was pointing and gasped at what he saw. The biggest boulder sat implanted in the ground staring back at them. "You have to slice this boulder in half."

"HUH?!" Seokmin practically shouted when he was given his task.

"If you can break this boulder, I will let you go to natural selection."

Seokmin glared at the boulder in anger, his hand gripping on the handle to the sword he held until his knuckles turned white. He turned to his teacher to tell him he would do it but was met with silence. His teacher had left him alone again.

Seokmin looked back to the boulder and squared his shoulder, if this was all that stood in his way of becoming a demon slayer and going to that final selection then he would slice it right in half! He raised his sword high above his head and swung it down with all his might, the blade connecting with the rock and let out a shrill echo that bounced off the trees. He felt the vibrations shoot through his body and he dropped the sword as he shook, falling clean on his ass.

He looked up at the boulder with a hopeless look in his eyes, his frustration starting to rise up through him as he stood up. "I'm going to slice this boulder, I have to!" He grumbled, picking up his sword and storming away in the opposite direction.

He took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. With a war cry he charged the boulder and attempted to slice it a second time, unfortunately he received the same result as he had the first time.

With a sigh he fell back against a tree and looked up to the darkening sky, his eyes closing a bit as he attempted to catch his breath. Doubt started to cloud his mind as he stared at the boulder, there was no way in hell he would be able to slice directly through that it's almost as if Seong-su didn't want him to ever go to the final selection process. His eyes snapped open and he glared up at the stars that decorated the sky, his right hand balled into a fist and his left hand clasped the sword as he stood up. He was going to slice this boulder, he was going to the final selection and he was going to become a demon slayer. He had to, he had to do it for Chan.

"I'll make it to the final selection Chan, if it's the last thing I do!"


	4. To Be Continued

Seokmin went back to the basics, running down the mountain, swinging his sword it didn’t matter. He had to slice that boulder, there was no other option. Still, he couldn’t help but feel like he’d hit a dead end. It seemed that no matter how hard he worked he was met with the same result.

”Come on!” He shouted, throwing his sword at the boulder in frustration.

How was it that he couldn’t do this? He’s gotten so strong over the last two years he’s been training just to get to this point, and it had already been three months since he’d been tasked to cut the boulder.

He approached the large rock with a glare, letting his eyes take in its entirety. Sucking in a deep breath he brought his head back and slammed it against the boulder with as much force as possible. He'd been able to crack tree trunks with his skull so he had no doubt this would work as well. He stepped back in a daze and saw that the boulder showed no signs of giving much to his frustration. With a sob Seokmin dropped to his knees and let his head fall against the bottom of the boulder. It was no use, it didn't matter which angle he came at it from, which direction he sliced, he was never able to make that boulder slice open.

Tears fell down his cheeks and Seokmin found himself choking back sobs, he felt like a complete failure. "Chan, i'm so sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't be the hero you needed."

"Oi, crying isn't going to do you much good is it?"

Seokmin looked up at the shadow that cast over him, his eyes rising until he saw the figure of a young male sitting on top of the boulder. He wiped his eyes as he stood up and took a few steps back, the stranger slid down from the rock and pulled out a wooden stick as he stalked towards him. Seokmin noticed he was wearing a fox mask that only covered the top half of his face, from his upper lip down he wore a frown that was directed completely at him.

"W-who are you?!" Seokmin asked in surprise. The stranger grinned and pointed his stick directly at him. "My name doesn't matter. Pick up your sword, we're going to fight!"

Seokmin raised his brows in doubt but raised his sword anyway, only then realizing that he had an actual weapon and this boy....well he only had a wooden stick! "I can't fight you, you don't have a real sword!" The boy chuckled and took his stance, giving Seokmin an evil grin. "It's nice that you think I need a real weapon. But if I had a real sword today I would kill you."

Seokmin didn't have a chance to react to the male's words because he was being charged at within seconds. He moved out of the way just in time but that didn't stop the stranger from hitting his left shoulder with as much force as possible behind his wooden stick.

He cried out but still managed to move quickly, not wanting to catch another blow from the male. He swung his sword with all his might directly at the male and was surprised to see him deflect it and almost knock the blade out of his hands. The stranger jumped over another swing of his blade and kicked him in the chest, making him stumble back a bit. He wanted to stop and beg for a moment to breathe but it was too late, the stranger had run up on him and swung his stick hard. It connected beneath his chin and sent Seokmin flying backwards and knocking him out cold.

The stranger stood over him for a few moments and sighed as he picked up the sword that hand landed a few feet away, he placed it next to the unconscious male without a word before turning and heading back towards the woods.

"He's your responsibility now, teach him well." He said over his shoulder. A second figure stepped out from the shadows and nodded, knowing full well that there was a long road ahead of them to train Seokmin.

Seokmin's eyes didn't open until the sun was about to set and even then his head welcomed him with a great amount of pain. When his eyes adjusted there was a female sitting next to him with a bowl in her hands, she gave him a gentle smile and held out the bowl without a word.

"That move, it was awesome! How did he do that, who was he?!" Seokmin asked as he took the bowl without a second thought. No, he definitely didn't second guess receiving food from a stranger...his mother was probably rolling in her grave.

"Who? Yoongi?" The female asked. "He's my brother, we both trained under Seong-su. I'm sure with proper training you'll be able to do that move as well." She assured. Seokmin looked at her with a questioning look, handing back the now empty bowl. Proper training? As if he hadn't been doing that these past two years?!

"You're wondering who I am and why I said proper training aren't you?" The female asked, walking over to the small fire she'd built over to the side of the clearing. "I-I, well yeah." He admitted sheepishly. This girl seemed to be much more laid back than her brother, Seokmin wondered how they could possibly be related.

"My name is Yeri, and the proper training i'm talking about is your concentrated breathing." She explained.

"Concentrated breathing?" He asked.

Yeri nodded and shot him another warm smile. "Concentrated breathing will help you become a powerful demon slayer, and learning a specific technique will help you become one of the greatest." She explained as Seokmin walked over to her and sat down. His body ached from the beating he'd received earlier but he was so interested in what Yeri was talking about that he could ignore the pain.

"Unfortunately I only know the water technique in breathing, but I'll teach you everything I know." She promised. Seokmin smiled brightly at her and nodded as he took another bowl of the stew she was offering.

"Why should I know concentrating breathing?" Seokmin asked quietly as he took the bowl. Yeri smiled and placed her hand over her heart. "Concentrated breathing will accelerated your blood circulation and your heart rate which will cause your body temperature to rise. This will allow you to be as strong as a demon while you remain a human. That's why it concentrates on expanding your lung's capacity. When you bring air into your blood, and when your blood gets excited, it will make your bones and muscles scurry to heat up and grow stronger."

Seokmin stared at the female for a moment before nodding. If he really thought about it, he could see why that would help him in the long run, being as strong as a demon while fighting would help him defeat those powerful beings and help him be able to protect Chan.

"How will I be able to do that?" He asked.

Yeri simply stared at him and gave him a gentle smile.

"You'll train to the death. At the end of the day that's all you can do."

Seokmin sighed, he could already tell that this was going to be a lot harder than he thought. No wonder he hadn't been able to slice the boulder on his own up until now.

"Sleep well tonight, we'll start tomorrow." Yeri encouraged. Seokmin didn't need to be told twice, once he was finished with his second bowl he laid down and fell right asleep, the gentle cracking from the fire lulling him easily.

Day in and day out Seokmin would practice his concentrated breathing and every day he would work until he felt like his limbs would fall off on their own. Sweat dripping down his face and temples until he just couldn't take it anymore. Yeri made it look like it was the easiest thing in the world yet Seokmin was always gasping for air each time he attempted it. The only good thing that came from this was how patient Yeri was, she never scolded Seokmin or got angry with him, unlike Yoongi.

Every day at the end of his training Yoongi would appear with the same wooden rod and always challenge Seokmin to another battle....and of course every time Seokmin would lose.

Three months of this hell and he was damn tired of it.

"Don't get too frustrated. These techniques take a while to learn." Yeri encouraged one night.

"I want to get better quicker, I have to. I have to go to final selection for my brother." Seokmin said with a sigh. Yeri glanced at him for a moment before turning her eyes back to the small fire before them. A moment of silence hung between the two before she bothered speaking again. "Tell me about your brother." She said softly.

Seokmin looked at the female with a smile and scooted until he was facing her completely. "Chan is my younger brother, he's been staying with Seong-su while i've been up here. He...he was turned into a demon so I have to find a way to cure him." Seokmin said sadly. Yeri place a hand on his shoulder softly and gave him a gentle squeeze as if to silently encourage him. "I wasn't there to protect my family, and most of them are dead because of it. I need to get Chan back to normal, I have to."

"You're a good brother Seokmin. And I know that you'll become a good demon slayer because of it." Yeri patted his head before stretching a bit. "You have a long way to go before you'll be good enough to beat Yoongi, I hope you know that." At his deflated look she gave a small giggle and punched his arm. "But once you reach that state I have no doubt you'll be a very powerful man."

"Thank you." Seokmin said softly. Yeri nodded and stood, going to her spot on the other side of the fire and laying down quietly. Seokmin turned himself up to the sky, his mind wondering to what his brother may be doing right now. He was hoping that he was awake and just waiting for him but since he hadn't seen Seong-su in so long he really wasn't sure. Sleep called to him soon after that and he found himself closing his eyes rather quickly.

It continued on like this for a while. Day after day Seokmin would train his breathing and work on his techniques and day after day Yoongi would show up at the end and beat him senseless with his wooden sword.

"Why is he like that, Yoongi?" Seokmin asked one day. Yeri glanced over to him and gave a small sigh as she shrugged her shoulders. "Yoongi was always the protective type. When he was training he wanted nothing more than to be the strongest out of all of us." She replied.

"And was he? The strongest?" Seokmin asked.

Yeri nodded, her finger reaching down to the earth and drawing a small pattern in the dirt as she spoke. "Yes. Of the two of us he was always stronger, but he was brash. He never thought things through when it came to fighting. I'm much more technical, I like to have plans for everything that needs to be done." She explained.

It didn't take many more sessions for Seokmin to determine that Yeri was right, Yoongi was very hot headed when it came to combat but that didn't stop him from kicking Seokmin's ass every chance he had. He like Yeri more, she would always stop him and correct what was wrong rather than just kick his ass.

Yeri was constantly correcting him but Seokmin felt like he wasn't really moving forward. It was frustrating more than anything and every day Yoongi would look down at him with a smug grin it just caused him to be even more angry.

It took a whole year before Yeri said he was ready. "You're ready, Seokmin." She said with a nod. Seokmin looked at her with wide eyes, her words had come as a shock to him. "Wait, really?" He asked. She smiled and nodded, shaking his hand. "I've taught you all I know, you're ready to fight Yoongi." She walked away from him without a second glance and stood at the edge of the clearing. A thick mist was coming in from the woods surrounding them, making it almost impossible to see the female as she stood off to the side. When Seokmin turned he almost jumped because Yoongi was standing right there, and this time his sword was not made of wood.

"Y-yoongi." He said in shock. The male stepped forward and unsheathed his sword, holding it with its blade pointing straight at Seokmin. For the first time since he began his training Seokmin was not afraid, his heart rate didn't increase when he saw that blade like it normally would with the wooden one, instead he took a deep breath and pointed his own sword at his opponent.

"Ready." Yeri called from the sidelines. Both men squeezed the handles to their blades and even though Seokmin couldn't see his eyes he knew that Yoongi's were like his and held a look of determination.

"Go!"

The fight was over in an instant. Seokmin moved in and took a deep and stilling breath. With a single swing of his sword his blade sliced directly through Yoongi's mask. Seokmin gasped as he realized what had happened, Yoongi's mask fell off of his face and he could finally see the other male's face. It wasn't donning its normal scowl or frown, instead Yoongi was giving him a small smile. A smile that held so much sadness, as it looked at Seokmin he couldn't help but feel his heart tighten in sadness.

"Seokmin."

The male looked at Yeri who wore the same expression as Yoongi. Her normally calm voice had a hint of sadness seeped into it and her eyes looked like they were threatening to become overwhelmed with tears. "What you did, please don't forget it." She begged softly. "Don't forget it...and beat him too. Promise us that." She whispered as the mist wrapped around her and made him lose sight of her. 

When Seokmin looked back in front of him his eyes widened again because Yoongi no longer stood in front of him, instead when he looked forward he saw the boulder sitting directly in his eyesight.

And it was cut clean down the middle.

Seokmin stood in shock as he processed what had happened, remembering Yeri's words. The only reason Seokmin had won was because of a combination to what Yeri had taught him and what he already knew. The moment he'd taken his breath to focus on his attack his nose had smelled the scent of what he could only describe as an opening thread. It had attached itself from the tip of his blade to Yoongi's weak spot, the spot that he knew he could beat him with. His sword was pulled in that direction with a great force and had sliced easily through his mask, it was a sensation that Seokmin had never experienced in all the years he'd trained.

As he stood in the clearing, staring at the boulder with wide eyes he could hear the crunching footprints of someone approaching him. He turned and saw Seong-su walking towards him, his expression unreadable. `

"Sir...." Seokmin said softly.

The older male stared at the sliced boulder, his shoulders slumping a bit the more he looked at it. His next words would haunt Seokmin for the rest of his life, because they were words Seokmin never thought Seong-su would ever say.

"I was never planing on sending you to the final selection." He said quietly. "I....I can't bare to watch any more of my children die."

Seokmin looked at him with sad eyes, his hands were trembling so much he tried to hold onto his blade in hopes that it would stop it from shaking so much.

"Seokmin, I was so sure that you wouldn't be able to slice this boulder but...." Seong-su turned to Seokmin who's eyes were cast down at the ground, too afraid to look up at his teacher. Seong-su placed a gentle hand ontop of his head and ruffled his hair lovingly, a sad smile that could rival Yoongi's adorning his face.

"Well done my boy, you really are remarkable Seokmin." The younger male found himself releasing a small gasp as tears welled his eyes, silently they fell down his cheeks and he found himself unable to stop them. Seong-su pulled him into a tight hug and Seokmin sobbed loudly, his hands dropping the sword and curling into the fabric of the older male's robes.

"Seokmin, please come back alive from the final selection. Chan and I...we will wait for you here."

Seokmin nodded against his teacher's shoulder as he continued letting his tears fall and soak into the fabric of his robes. For the first time in years he'd heard praise and now, now he was about to leave behind everything to finish becoming a demon slayer.

That night Seong-su created a feast for Seokmin, he cooked him so much meat that the younger male was sure his stomach was going to burst from being so full. "Why are you cooking so much meat? Don't you think it's too much?" He asked in a concerned tone.

"We're celebrating you tonight, you've completed your training so eat as much as you'd like." He said, handing him another bowl.

Seong-su watched as Seokmin ate some more food eagerly, he couldn't help the sadness that began to seep inside of him. From here on out Seong-su couldn't do much for the young warrior, he would be forced to face hardships alone but Seong-su felt that he was capable of overcoming them...Seokmin wasn't like his past students. He had a much more driven determination and had a heart that wouldn't slow down as long as he had a goal in mind. All of his training will feel as though it is worthless when he faces the strong demons that inhabit the earth, but his love for Chan will be strong enough to overcome that. So for tonight, Seokmin should eat as though he had no care in the world.

When he was finished with his food Seong-su had Seokmin sit at the table and immediately began to work on cutting his hair. Seokmin hadn't even noticed how long his hair had grown over the three years he'd been training. He felt relaxed as Seong-su went about cutting his hair, even felt himself being lulled into a much needed sleep.

"Seokmin."

The young male perked up at his name, causing Seong-su to yank on his hair a little bit. "Ow!" He cried out.

"Sorry. I wanted to ask if you enjoyed that meal tonight."

Seokmin smiled to himself when he was reminded of the meal he'd gotten to enjoy. "Yes sir! It's been a while since I've had such a big meal, I appreciate you making it for me." He said sincerely.

"You're growing and the more you eat the bigger you will grow. But that goes for demons as well, Seokmin. The more humans they consume the bigger they will be and the stronger they'll become as well."

Seokmin nodded slowly as Seong-su gathered the spare hair and went to throw it away. "Some demons will be able to transform their bodies, others can use strange spells, you'll need to be careful Seokmin. Of course, as your sense of smell gets even better, you'll be able to smell how many humans a demon has consumed." Seong-su walked back over to Seokmin and handed him a mask that reminded him of the one Yoongi wore.

"This is a white fox mask, I charged it with a warding spell that should protect you from harm." He said softly. Seokmin took the mask gingerly in his hands, he looked it over with wonder and gave a small smile. "Thank you sir, I'll treasure this."

Seokmin slept well that night even though he didn't get many hours of sleep he still felt well rested as he lay his head down in Seong-su's house one last time. When the sun rose the next morning Seokmin rose with it, changing into the new robes that Seong-su had laid out for him the night before. He fastened it tightly around his midsection and gave a deep sigh, today was the day.

He turned to his brother's bed that lay cast in the darkest corner of the room and knelt beside it. Chan's chest rose and fell at a steady rate and he took his hand softly, placing it against his forehead. "Chan, I'll be back here for you no matter what. I promise." He said quietly.

He gathered his belongings and headed outside where Seong-su was waiting for him by the door. With a strong smile Seokmin bowed to his teacher, staying in a 90 degree angle for a few moments before Seong-su made him stand back up. "Don't worry about Chan, I will take good care of him while you're away."

Seokmin smiled warmly and nodded at Seong-su's promise. "Yes sir, thank you for everything!"

He turned and began running towards the destination of the final selection, stopping a few yards away to turn around and wave happily at his teacher one last time. "I'm going now!"

Seong-su waved silently as Seokmin took off running again, getting farther and farther away until he stopped as if he'd forgotten something. "Oh, tell Yoongi and Yeri I said hello!!" He cheered happily before turning and running out of eyesight.

Seong-su gasped silently at Seokmin's request, abruptly halting his wave. "Seokmin...how do you know..."

"the names of those dead children?"

* * *

It was night before Seokmin reached the base of the Kiran Mountain, he walked up the path slowly as he neared the gathering site. He stopped when he came upon brightly colored flowers that covered every inch of the forest below, reaching up to touch one gently.

"All these Higan Cherry flowers, they're beautiful." He said to himself. It was strange to see so many decorating the base of the mountain, they weren't exactly in season. Seokmin approached a series of steps that would lead him to the gathering area and he took a deep breath, this was it. All of his training had led him to this exact moment, the moment when his life would change forever.

He climbed up the stairs slowly until he reached the top, his eyes falling on the other students who would be entering the forest as well. They all looked so serious, so strong, Seokmin felt a bit of intimidation creep into his mind but he did his best to block it out. There were quite a few participants gathered around, more than what he had anticipated there to be. Just as he'd found himself a spot to wait a soft voice began speaking, causing everyone to look in its direction.

"Welcome everyone, thank you for coming here tonight." The female said as she stood on an elevated stone so she could see over the small crowd. "Welcome, to the demon slayers corps final selection, each of you are here because your teachers felt you were ready for the final phase in becoming a demon slayer, I should hope you won't let those people down."

Seokmin swallowed thickly at her words, he glanced around at the other participants but they all either looked scared to death or were staring intensely at the female.

"There are demons trapped in this mountain, they were captured alive by demon slayer swordsmen and unable to leave. That is because Higan Cherry's, which demons hate so much, grows year round at the base of the mountain, making it impossible for them to leave. However, from this point on, there will be no Higan Cherry flowers growing on the mountain so demons will be prowling in the darkness. You will need to survive on this mountain for seven days to pass the final selection, you may not leave this mountain any sooner and be alive."

There were a few murmurs from the other participants but Seokmin let the information soak in. Suddenly these vibrant flowers seemed like a safe haven for him.

"And now, you may be on your way." The female concluded, bowing at the swordsmen.

Seokmin felt his body tense up a bit as he contemplated what to do. Should he wait a few moments to collect himself? Should he go right in and hope for the best? He didn't really have time to second guess, not at this point.

Without a second glance, Seokmin took the step towards the opening and walked across the threshold. His eyes glanced over at the female who stood by the opening and she gave him another small bow. "Good luck." She murmured to him as he stepped inside.

Luck had nothing to do with it, he would have to survive on skill and skill alone if he was going to survive a week up there.

" _I'll come back Chan, i'll come back for you_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two updates so close together? who do i think i am?! anyways i hope you guys are excited as our story begins to take off! if you haven't seen already, this is part of a series i am doing for every member of seventeen! each member is supposed to have a story that focuses mainly on them. as you can tell this one is seokmin centered. i'm currently writing one that is joshua and one that is soonyoung centered. and of course in my drafts i have one that is junhui and one that is jihoon centered. but like i said each member will get their own adventure and their own story so i hope you guys will read those as well. from time to time i may post a one shot just to get my mind going as well! sorry this is a bit long, thanks for reading!


	5. The Final Selection

Day 1

Seokmin kept his wits about him the moment he stepped over that threshold. His senses heightened and he kept his eyes, ears and nose peeled for the signs of any demons. The first one he encountered was about three hours after entering the forest.

He crunched over a stick and stood completely still, his eyes widening for a moment. "That scent, there's a demon!" He whispered. He jumped to the left as a clawed hand came clamoring down and barely missed him by a few inches. Shit, shit it almost had him. Seokmin pulled out his sword as he skidded out of the way and faced the fouled demon that snarled and growled at him.

"Delicious! Delicious! It's been so long since i've tasted fresh human flesh, come here boy and let me swallow you up!" The demon moaned as it stepped towards Seokmin.

The male took a step back, feeling the sensation of fear rush through him. He gripped the handle of his sword tightly and glared at the demon who let out a deep chuckle when he saw the look of determination that adorned Seokmin's face. "Perfect, perfect, that look in your eyes is so delicious i'm going to devour your face first!" It said excitedly before pouncing towards Seokmin in glee. With a single swing of his blade Seokmin decapitated the demon, causing the head to go flying and for the body to fall limp beside him.

 _Each of these swords uses a specific blade that can kill demons. While they are lethal to demons they will only die if their head is cut off Seokmin, that is where you need to end them_. Seong-su's words rang in Seokmin's ears as he listened to the demon wail as its body began to disappear right before his eyes. "Wait! I need to know how to turn a demon back into a human!" Seokmin said, grabbing the demon's face and holding it up to his. "You bastard, i'll kill you! I'll fucking kill you!" The demon seethed as its head disappeared in Seokmin's hands. With a sigh Seokmin stood and ran his hand through his hair in frustration. Getting this information was going to be a bit more difficult than he originally thought.

He found solace in a small cave as the sun began to set, he rested his back against the cold stoned wall and took a sad but deep breath. He needed to keep his wits about him, keep his senses clear if he was going to continue staying alive until the end of this. He tried his hardest to get some sleep but all he could hear was the screams of horror from other demon slayers throughout the night.

With a sigh Seokmin leaned his head back and closed his eyes, forcing them to close so he could try to get a small sliver of sleep. He'd drifted off to sleep slowly, his chest rising and falling as he felt fatigue consuming him when an ear piercing scream jolted him wide awake. With wide eyes Seokmin looked around to try and find the source only to see a female fall down right in front of his cave.

"No! No please!!" She screamed, scrambling up and continuing to run out of his eyesight. Seokmin watched in horror as a team of three demons rushed past the opening after her, each one shouting about how they would devour her flesh.

He jumped up as quickly as possible and rushed out of the cave after them, his feet crunching on the fallen leaves as he tried his best to see in the dark. Honestly, he didn't really need to see, the female's screams brought him to the edge of a small clearing as the girl backed against a tree, her blade on the ground a few feet away from her.

"Please!" She sobbed, falling to her knees as she begged. She couldn't be any older than fourteen, she was far too young to die. Without a second thought Seokmin rushed out of the trees, gripping the handle to his sword tightly as all three of the demons cackled and lunged at the screaming girl. Taking in a deep breath Seokmin brought down his blade in one swift motion and sliced clean through the necks of each of the demons. He stood in front of the weeping girl as the heads rolled off onto the soft ground and the bodies slumped in front of him.

"W-what? What?" The girl stuttered but Seokmin paid her no mind. He grabbed the head of a cursing demon and tried to ignore the foul stench that seeped from it as he spoke. "I need to know. How do you turn a demon back into a human?!" He asked desperately.

The girl watched with wide eyes as the demon only laughed in his hands and snapped his teeth at the boy. "As if that's possible boy! When I come back to life I will kill you!" It threatened before the head completely disappeared between Seokmin's fingers. Seokmin sighed in frustration and put his sword back into its holder before turning back to the still shaking female. "Thank you." She murmured as she dried her tears. Seokmin smiled and grabbed her sword, handing it back to her and helping her up.

"Be careful, it's best to find a cave in a place like this." He advised. When the girl looked at him in confusion he motioned for her to follow him and lead her back to his cave. When he checked to make sure it was clear he lead her inside and the two made themselves comfortable.

"If you're in a cave, the only way they can attack is from the front. While it limits your movements it also limits theirs. Plus, most demons will wait until morning to attack anyway. The trees on this mountain stop the sun from coming in, so they can attack even during the day." He warned.

The female nodded and wrapped her arms around her knees as she looked down at the floor, her entire body was shivering.

"You didn't have to save me."

Seokmin looked up in surprise to see the female now looking at him with tear filled eyes. "I ran by at least five demon slayers who all ignored my cries for help. I thought I was done for." She admitted sadly. Seokmin glanced down at the dirt for a moment, his mind clogging with the judgement the others must have had to not aid someone like her who clearly needed help. He looked back at the girl and gave her a warm smile and stretched out his hand. "I'm Seokmin."

The girl glanced down at his hand and took it, shaking it gently before returning his smile. "Momo."

"Well Momo, looks like day one of this test is pretty much over. I say we get some sleep." He advised again. Momo nodded and curled up onto the floor and was asleep before she knew it. Seokmin decided to stay up just a bit longer, wanting to keep watch in case any surprise attacks may occur.

It took until the next morning for Momo to ask about the fox mask he wore to the side of his head. "My teacher gave it to me. He said he enchanted it so I wouldn't get hurt." Seokmin replied. "Any chance it will help us survive the next week?" She asked dryly in return. Seokmin only chuckled, letting his fingers run across the material of the mask slowly as he did so. A fox mask wasn't going to keep him alive for the next week, but his will to see his brother again definitely would.

Day 3

The pair had stuck by each other for the next two days. Momo mostly stayed in the cave while Seokmin ventured out during the day to try and locate more demons. By the end of the third day Seokmin came back dragging his feet into the cave, to his surprise Momo wasn't there, but her sword was. His eyes widened a bit and he crawled out of the cave, glancing around silently to see if the female was anywhere to be seen.

"Momo?!" He whisper shouted, hoping that she and magically no demons could hear him calling for her. When he didn't get a response his worry began to grow and the male went to retrieve the female's sword and set off to go and find her.

He moved around the forest aimlessly until it hit him, the foul stench of a demon. With a gasp he pressed his back to a tree and pinched his nose shut, hoping it would make the smell stop burning his nostrils. He looked over his shoulders and saw a male come running into his line of sight, sweat pouring down his temple as he fell to his knees after tripping.

Get up! Seokmin wanted to shout but he didn't need to, the boy got up and ran out of his vision which allowed Seokmin to give a soft sigh of relief. That relief soon turned to horror when a demon crossed in front of him, it was huge and had multiple arms growing out across its body. But that wasn't the horrible sight that caused the look of horror to cross Seokmin's features. It was what the demon was clutching tightly in its grasp to its right side.

Momo.

The girl's eyes held a dead stare as she was held tightly in the grasp of the demon much to Seokmin's horror as he sat rooted in fear.

"Come here child, I promise I won't hurt you!" The demon said with a menacing chuckle as his mouth unhinged itself and opened wider than any mouth Seokmin had ever seen open. With a gasp, Seokmin clamped his hand over his mouth as he watched in horror as the demon stuffed Momo down its throat and consume her whole.

"What the fuck!" The other boy shouted at the sight, causing Seokmin to snap out of it. He watched as one of the arms from the demon shot out of its body and aimed straight for the other boy, much to his horror. Seokmin quickly drew his sword and lunged from the side, taking a steady breath as he swung his sword through the arm and cut it right off. He landed in front of the male and held his stance, glaring at the demon in front of him.

"You punk! Did you think that that would stop me?" It asked with a chuckle as another arm shot out from where the previous had been cut off. Seokmin tsked but only gripped his sword tighter as he glanced behind him at the male. "Are you okay?!" He asked.

"I'm fine! But you need to run!" The male said, getting up and shouting at Seokmin.

Seokmin wanted to scold him for a moment but just then a scent hit his nostrils that almost made him double over. The scent.....it was coming from beneath him! As soon as he realized it Seokmin grabbed the robes of the other male and pushed him out of the way, jumping to the right and barely getting out of the way as three arms shot out of the ground attempting to grab him.

Shit! That was close! He thought as he skidded to a stop. Seokmin's eyes zeroed in on the demon's neck and he let out a loud gasp. There was no way he would be able to slice that demon's neck, there were four strong arms wrapped around it that looked thick enough to snap his blade.

"We'll have to work together if we want to-" Seokmin cut himself short when he looked over where the stranger had been standing, there was nothing there any longer. "Bastard." He said under his breath. Suddenly Seokmin felt something slam into his left side and send him flying into a tree. The mask Seong-su had worked so hard to make for him hit the tree and immediately broke in half. With a grunt Seokmin doubled over and held onto his stomach as the demon glared down at the broken mask.

"T-that mask...." A scowl crossed its features when it realized where it was from. "You must be a student of Seong-su's...."

Seokmin's eyes widened when he heard his teacher's name and he glared at the demon with such fierceness it would make even the strongest of men tremble. "How do you know my teacher?!" He demanded as he climbed to his feet. The demon grinned and let out a bellowing laugh which made Seokmin flinch. "He's the bastard that trapped me here! He trapped me here over thirty years ago!" He shouted, arms shooting towards Seokmin who dodged them just in time again.

Thirty years? There's no way this demon has been on this mountain for thirty years! He must have eaten hundreds of people, and plenty of demons as well to satisfy his cravings between humans. This made Seokmin angry, to know that there was a demon who had lived this long after having devoured so many humans.

"You look just as delicious as the rest of them."

Seokmin looked back up at the demon who was beaming in glee, this made Seokmin's blood run cold at the sight. The rest of them? Who was he talking about?

"I've been locked in here for over thirty years because of that bastard and I promised, I promised that any child he sent in here would never make it back. So I ate them!"

Seokmin's mouth dropped open as the salivating demon beamed in glee, its eyes rolling back into its head as it recalled all of the children it had eaten. "The masks, he always gives you those masks that's how I identify you. You are all just so....delicious." It said as its tongue darted out of its mouth and ran its tongue across its lips.

"You're lying!" Seokmin shouted angrily.

"Hmm? I have to say, the most delicious was that brother sister duo." Seokmin felt his body chill when he said that, his mind immediately turning to Yoongi and Yeri. "What were their names? Y something. The brother, he was far too easy to trick. One mention of how I had killed the others and he was blindly attacking me." Seokmin's eyes widened when the demon described what he did next, his eyes filling with tears.

"He thought he had me but as soon as he got too close....I smashed his head in!" The demon said gleefully.

"Oh and his sister, her emotions got the best of her, I didn't need to put up much of a fight with either of them in the end."

That bastard! Seokmin let out an angry cry as his rushed the demon only to feel a fist hit him directly in his side and send him flying again. Seokmin lay motionless on the ground, pain swirling through his body as he lay still.

"Hmmm how sad, another child Seong-su will lose to me. Maybe now he'll get the hint. Don't send your children here!" The demon bellowed.

 _I'm sorry._ The words echoed in Seokmin's mind and it felt as though he was floating. _How can I become a demon slayer, if I can't defeat these demons?_

_"Seokmin." His mother's voice came to him like a sweet call. Seokmin sat up and met her eyes tearfully. "Mom?! Mom!" He wrapped his arms tightly around her as she embraced him into a hug, his siblings wrapping their arms around him too as they cried. "I'm sorry, i'm sorry I wasn't there!" He gasped out tearfully. "Seokmin, you have to stay alive, for all of us, for your brother!"_

_"Mom...I can't." Seokmin said in a soft voice._

_"Seokmin." This time Seokmin recognized a second voice. When he looked again his family was gone and in their place were Yeri and Yoongi, each with a sad expression. "Yeri? Yoongi?" He asked surprised. "Seokmin, we're so sorry." Yeri said with a soft voice. "We should have told you sooner."_

_She cupped the young demon slayers face and gave him a gentle smile. "We didn't want you to worry. You were doing well." She encouraged._

_"He's much stronger than Yoongi." Seokmin said sadly. Yoongi grinned and let out a low chuckle. "I didn't train you hard for no reason Seokmin, kick his ass." Yoongi demanded. Seokmin took a deep breath and nodded, holding Yeri's small hands in his. "I'll do it, I'll defeat him for you." He promised. Yeri smiled and squeezed his hands softly before leaning in and whispering in his ear. "Remember when you defeated my brother, remember what you did then." She encouraged, her voice fading as she and her brother also faded into darkness._

When he defeated Yoongi?

Seokmin's eyes shot open and he rolled out of the way as the demon's arm shot towards him. He landed back on his feet with a grunt, glaring at the demon who wore a shocked expression.

"Ah, so you can still move? No matter, I've always loved to play with my food!" It said gleefully, thrusting its many arms towards the young male. Seokmin swung his blade and detached each arm as it came towards him but he knew this was a waste of time to continue slicing these hands off if they were just going to grow back at such a rapid pace. Seokmin took the opportunity and turned to run through the trees, his mind racing as he tried to figure out what to do.

"You can't defeat me by slicing off my arms young grasshopper, you can't even slice off my head!" The demon laughed. "Then again, those other children thought they could defeat me as well, yet here I am!"

Seokmin tried to ignore him as he spoke, he didn't want to lose his cool. But he couldn't let this demon go, he had to defeat it. For Yoongi, for Yeri, for Seong-su and all of the other fallen students. Before any other lives become sacrifices, he had to bring him down now!

With a cry Seokmin advanced towards the demon, slicing off the arms of the demon as he ran towards it. His eyes widened as his nose picked up a scent, his eyes darting around to find he source of it.

The ground!

Seokmin jumped high in the air as five arms shot out of the ground and attempted to grab him in a surprise attack.

"H-He jumped! How? How did I miss him?!" The demon thought in anger. The demon's eyes narrowed and he shot out his hands in the air towards the boy in another attack. "You may have dodged that surprise attack, but no way you can avoid one in mid air!"

* * *

_"Yoongi, do you think Seokmin will defeat the demon?" Yeri asked sadly._

_Yoongi curled his fingers into the fabric of his robes and he sighed softly. "He may win...he may lose...either way, there's one strong factor about Seokmin that we can't deny. Seokmin....is the one who sliced the biggest and toughest boulder of all."_

* * *

Seokmin gasped and dodged the hands that were shooting at him, landing on an arm that had yet to recoil back to the body. The demon's eyes widened when he saw Seokmin running up his arm, he still couldn't understand how he'd managed to deflect his attack.

He couldn't let this demon get away, no more children would be sacrificed, Seong-su would no longer live in fear of this demon!

Tiny arms began to pop up from the arm Seokmin was running on to his surprise, but he couldn't let that keep him from the plan, he had to keep moving forward!

"Total concentration, water breathing!" Seokmin took a deep breath as he tried to control his breathing for his attack. He slashed through every arm that came towards him, his eyes trained completely on the demon in front of him.

"Dammit, he got too close to me!" The demon grumbled as his arms were sliced completely off. "It doesn't matter, my neck is too tough for him to cut anyway!"

"First form!" Seokmin shouted as he neared the demon's neck.

"I'll crush your head the moment you get close to me punk!" The demon bellowed angrily, it's widened eyes baring down on the male as he came closer.

Seokmin ignored his words as his eyes narrowed on the opening thread that appeared before his eyes. His blade was pulled down with a strong force and cut clean through the demon's neck as if it were like butter. "Water Surface Slash!"

The head fell onto the ground with a heavy thump, the demon's eyes fixating on Seokmin as he landed on the ground and then to his body as it began to disappear. "Dammit! Dammit, Dammit Dammit!" The demon said angrily. "I can't stop it from disappearing! I can't stop it!"

Seokmin shoved his blade back into its holder, his eyes watching the body slowly disappear.

"I can't believe a demon hunter will be the last thing I ever see, it's not fair!" The demon wailed. It watched as Seokmin turned to look at him and it let out a small gasp when it saw Seokmin's face. His features weren't one of determination or anger but instead it was one that held a look of sadness as he looked at the demon. Seokmin couldn't explain it, but the scent that he was getting from the disappearing demon was one the held nothing but regret and coldness.

"Such a sad scent." Seokmin whispered as he approached the demon's decaying body. A single outstretched arm was lingering in the air towards him and Seokmin took the large hand in both of his softly. The demon's fingers wrapped around his hands softly, holding on to them as if remembering what it felt like to have peace for the first time in forever. Tears swelled into the corners of the demon's eyes as he saw felt the warmth that creeped through his body.

Seokmin placed the hand against his forehead and closed his eyes to say a small prayer for the demon."God, all I ask of you is that in this man's next life please don't let him turn into a demon." He begged softly as the hand completely disappeared. As soon as the demon disappeared Seokmin couldn't stop the tears from falling. He fell to his knees and put his head in his hands as he cried, his mind thinking of Yeri, Yoongi and all of the other children of Seong-su's that were murdered by this demon.

"I won, I won." He murmured softly between tears. "Momo, go with them back to the mountain. Seong-su will take care of you there." He promised. His eyes looked up at the darkened sky and he gave a small sigh. "Seong-su, i'm coming home."

* * *

Seokmin chased after many more demons, always asking each one how he could save Chan and each time having to kill the demon before they could be bothered to reply. In total he destroyed over 5 demons that week and each one refused to answer his question to help Chan. He ran blindly through the forest and only stopped to catch his breath when he felt his lungs were about to burst.

Clutching his sides he finally managed to look up and saw that he'd made it halfway down the mountain. His eyes widened when realized this and he gave a huge sigh.

He'd made it.

Only four members had made it down the mountain, Seokmin didn't remember any from when he'd first showed up but the intensity that hung in the air was one he just couldn't forget. They were the four who had made it out and Seokmin realized the boy he'd rescued from Seong-su's demon was not one of them. He couldn't help but feel guilty that that boy wasn't here, he hoped his end wasn't met with a lot of pain.

"I'm going to die."

Seokmin's thoughts were interrupted by the male to his left who was shaking like a leaf, his wide eyes cast down as he continued speaking. "Even though I survived what was the point? I'm going to die in the end anyway." He asked himself.

"Welcome back."

Seokmin's eyes turned back to the front where the female who had spoken to them at the start of the week stood. "Congratulations are in order, I am happy to see that you have returned safely." She said sincerely.

"What do I do now then?" The survivor to Seokmin's right asked. "Where's my fucking sword?" He demanded.

"You will be issued your uniforms first. Your measurements will be taken and then your rank will be engraved. There are ten total ranks in becoming a demon slayer and you will begin at the lowest rank."

The boy tisked and put his hand on his hip in anger. "And my sword?"

"First you will choose the ore for your swords today. However, your swords will take ten to fifteen days to complete. But first...." She clapped her hands loudly and Seokmin gasped at the sound of caws coming from above. The four swordsmen looked up to the sky to see birds flying down towards them at top speed. A crow landed on Seokmin's shoulder, its claws digging into the fabric of his robes.

"What is this?!" The boy to his right asked as he swatted at the crows angrily.

"You are being assigned your own individual messenger crow." The female replied. "They will be used primarily for communication" She added.

"Um." Seokmin glanced to his left and his eyes widened when he saw the male's bird. His right hand was raised as a small sparrow was sitting on the top of his hand. "Did you say crow?" He asked in confusion. "Is this not a sparrow?" The male, Seokmin and the remaining female from the natural selection all suddenly jumped when the male on the right pushed away his crow in anger and stormed up to the female who kept her composure. 

"ENOUGH!" He bellowed. Seokmin looked in shock as the male grabbed the girl by her hair roughly and yelled at her in a threatening tone. "Who the hell cares about your stupid crows?! I want my sword, NOW!"

Seokmin rushed up and grabbed the male's arm roughly. "Let go of her! Let go of her or I will break your arm!" He demanded.

"Who the hell are you? I'd like to see you try!" The male shouted. Seokmin glared at him and squeezed his arm tightly, forcing him to release his grasp on the female's hair. "You son of a bitch!"

"Enough." The female said in a calm voice as she smoothed her hair. She turned and pulled a cloth off of a table behind her, stepping to the side she let the others come and look at what had been revealed. "Please select an ore for your sword. The sword you will carry with you and that will slay demons will be one of your own choosing." She informed them.

"It's not like i'll live long anyway." The light haired boy behind Seokmin mumbled.

All four stood in front of the table for a few moments, none of them saying anything. How in the hell were they supposed to pick one out? They all looked exactly the same. With a deep breath Seokmin allowed himself to take a big whiff of the air, his eyes narrowing as he stepped up to the table and picked up an ore for his sword, soon everyone did the same and held an ore in their hand. 

Once all were dismissed Seokmin slowly headed back to Seong-su's. His body ached and all he wanted to do was sleep, but a small part of him was happy he was going back. And that feeling only grew the closer he got to the house. He wondered what he was going to when he got back, he'd check on Chan first definitely, he hoped that his brother was doing okay. He limped the entire way home and his mind wandered to all of those demons back in the forest, their cold and angry eyes that held no answers for him, he felt like a failure.

He pushed himself onward, making his way slowly back to the small house at the base of the mountains. He hadn't made it back until it was well past dark and he was barely able to stand on his own two legs. But he made it, Chan and Seong-su...he made it back.

The front door was kicked down and Seokmin's eyes widened when he saw Chan walk out of the house, his eyes wide with the wonder that Seokmin had recognized from before any of this had occurred.

"CHAN?! CHAN! YOU'RE AWAKE?!" Seokmin called out in surprise, causing his brother to turn to him. Chan ran towards his brother and Seokmin found the strength to go to his legs and pushed himself to run to his brother as well, falling halfway down the hill with a grunt. He sat up and felt Chan wrap his arms around him into a tight hug, pulling him against his soft chest. Seokmin had done his best to keep his composure, wrapping his arms beneath Chan's and holding him tightly as tears welled in his eyes.

"Chan...." He gasped out, burying his head into his brother's shoulder. "Why? Why did you fall asleep all of a sudden?! You wouldn't wake up no matter what I had done! I was worried you had died, please please don't do that again!" He begged.

Seong-su stepped out of the house and let his eyes fall on to the two brothers, he dropped the wood he had been holding and found himself rushing over to the pair, pulling them both into his arms to comfort them. "Seokmin.... you came back to us alive." Seong-su said as he began crying silently.

Seokmin wailed as he was held on to, he let the tears fall as he was comforted silently by the other two men until he felt like he could no longer cry. Seong-su pulled away and held Seokmin's face in his hands, letting the remainder of the boy's tears fall across his fingers as he gave him a gentle smile. "Seokmin..." He said softly.

"You really are a remarkable kid."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And just like that the final selection is over! I wonder who the three other survivors are? Hm?? For those of you who are not familiar with the manga or anime this is based off of...one of them is actually another main character!
> 
> Up until this point we have really only been met with just Seokmin, Chan and Seong-su. I promise by the end of the next chapter an introduction to another seventeen character will be made!
> 
> As always you can send me questions on twitter and of course if you want to be friends on there you're more than welcome to! my @ is kimetsunoyibo !!


	6. A Demon Slayer's Mission

Seong-su prepared a feast that night for Seokmin, celebrating his triumphant return. Seokmin ate happily as his brother sat by him for most of the night with a look of happiness shining across his face. While eating Seong-su informed Seokmin of what he had done to help Chan while he had been away much to Seokmin's surprise.

"Hypnotize? Can you really do that on a demon?" Seokmin asked in surprise. Seong-su nodded as he filled the bowl with more meat and rice and handed it back to Seokmin. "I'm not sure it worked, but I tried to have it to where he sees demons as the enemies and humans as his allies." He explained. Seokmin ate more of the food provided for him but he sat and thought on it more thoroughly. He wasn't exactly happy that Seong-su had done that but he was wondering himself if he'd actually managed to convince Chan of that.

"So, he won't attack humans?" Seokmin asked.

"To be honest, he was already hesitant to eat humans. But now he will see them as his family." Seong-su explained. Seokmin nodded and continued chewing on his food silently, no words were spoken for a bit as Seong-su ate as well. Chan lay his head gently on Seokmin's lap and out of habit he ran his hands through his younger brother's hair.

"Seokmin."

The boy looked up at his teacher who's eyes were cast down into his lap. He wasn't sure but Seokmin swore he saw tears falling from his teacher's eyes. "Thank you.For coming home, for bringing peace to those who failed to return home, and for defeating a demon who has haunted me ever since I left him there." Seong-su said softly. Seokmin felt his own batch of tears starting to form but he fought to keep them as controlled as possible. "I would do it all over again for you and my brother." He said truthfully.

Chan reached up and clutched Seokmin's robes, shooting him a happy look. "Yes, you've done well by both me and your brother. So you should rest well tonight, you've earned it." Seokmin agreed and thanked his teacher for the wonderful meal, his stomach was so full it was practically three sizes bigger. He climbed into bed and Chan climbed in beside him, Seokmin gave his brother a smile and patted his cheek softly as he felt sleep starting to overtake his body. "Chan, I kept my promise to return and i'll keep my promise to turn you back into a human." He said with a yawn.

Chan gave a small and gentle huff as he shut his eyes which made Seokmin smile, he was so happy to see his brother had awakened. He felt fatigue's sweet sweet call as he began to drift off and found his own eyes starting to slowly fall heavy. Truth be told, Seokmin was afraid that if he fell asleep then Chan would never wake up again. But as his eyes fell shut he felt the presence of Seong-su as he draped a blanket over the two brothers and he felt safe, he felt warm, he felt peace.

Seokmin continued keeping in physical shape while staying with Seong-su, he and Chan would help out anyway the could around the house while Seong-su would give Seokmin tips for anything that he may come across while out in the field. After he'd been there over a week since final selection Seong-su sat him down to have a late night talk while Chan got ready for bed. "I've been contacted by your sword wielder, he will be here tomorrow to deliver your blade." Seokmin's eyes widened in excitement and he couldn't help the grin that spread across his face. "Really?! I've been waiting for it since final selection, do you think it will be really cool?!" He asked. Seong-su chuckled and patted the young male's head. "I have no doubt that you will receive a wonderful blade, I hope you keep this excitement for everything to come."

Seokmin bid Seong-su a good night before heading to bed himself, crawling in beside him and giving him a gentle hug. "Sleep tight Chan, our lives really begin to change tomorrow." He whispered.

When the sun rose the next morning Seokmin found himself startled awake, his eyes bolting open as he immediately went to grab for Chan. When his fist wrapped in only empty sheets he shot straight up and looked around the room, letting out a gentle sigh when he saw his brother crouched by the door and peering through the crack.

"Chan? What is it?" Seokmin asked as he climbed from the bed and walked to the door. Seong-su was speaking with a man he'd never seen before and it made the young demon slayer nervous, he grabbed Chan's shoulder and pulled him back a bit. He was ready to tell Chan to hide back in his basket when the door swung open and surprised the both. Seong-su let out a breathy chuckle when he saw their reactions and patted Chan on top of the head.

"Good you're both awake. Seokmin, your sword wielder is here to present your sword, I explained to him about Chan so he wouldn't be nervous when he saw him."

Seokmin visibly relaxed and Chan even hummed in happiness for his teacher. "My sword is really here?!" Seokmin asked excitedly as he was led out of the room. A shorter male was standing in the corner clutching something long inside of decorated cloths. The male went stiff when he saw Chan rush straight towards him, Seokmin reached out to try and stop his brother but didn't reach him in time. The young demon rushed over to the strange and really looked him over before sighing in content and patting the elder's head much to the male's shock.

"He? He didn't try to eat me?!" He asked.

"Right. I worked hard so that Chan would see demons as the enemy and humans as someone he needs to protect as if they're his family. Chan will never hurt a human." Seong-su explained. The stranger seemed to relax a bit before clearing his throat to gain everyone's attention again. "My name is Obi, I am the wielder of your sword." He said with a small grin. Seokmin returned his expression, clasping his hands together in excitement when his eyes lay on what he can only imagine is his blade.

"Seokmin, normally the wielders do not deliver their blades themselves but Obi insisted on seeing you receive yours." Seong-su explained.

Seokmin's eyes widened at what Seong-su told him and he looked at the deliverer with curiosity, wondering why he had come all the way to deliver the sword himself. "I'm honored you came all this way just to deliver my blade-"

"I had to see it for myself!" Obi said excitedly. "When I heard you were a descendant of the last sun breathers I knew I would witness a red blade!"

Seokmin stared at Obi in confusion before looking at Seong-su for some type of explanation. "Sun breathers?"

"I did my research while you were away Seokmin, your great great grandfather was a sun breather who had passed down his techniques to his son and so on, your father may have called it something else but you should be well versed in it." Seong-su explained.

Seokmin's eyes widened a bit in recognition, remembering how his father would dance in the center of flamed torches that surrounded him in a circle. So that was sun breathing? "What do ou mean by a red blade?" He asked Obi.

"The aura you chose after selection was placed into your blade and each blade changes specifically to that of the demon slayer it is held by. I was hoping to see a red blade like the color of the sun! Imagine how amazing that would be!" He said excitedly before shoving the clothed blade into Seokmin's hands. With a deep breath he tugged at the strings that kept the cloth in place and removed it, allowing it to drop to the floor. Seokmin sucked in a gasp when he saw his sword in all its beauty, it was absolutely stunning!

"Obi, you did such a good job!" Seokmin beamed. Obi returned his smile, his hands clasping together almost as if in prayer. "Hold it up, I want to see it change its color!" He said excitedly.

Seokmin did as he was told, everyone's eyes in the room were trained on his blade as he grasped it tightly and held it towards the sunlight, for a moment nothing happened and Seokmin couldn't really hide his disappointment but when Chan grunted and pointed at his sword did Seokmin see the actual change. Slowly his blade began to change its color but not to the red Obi had been desperate to see, instead it turned solid black much to everyone's surprise.

"Black?" Seokmin asked in surprise, he raised his eyes to Obi who had a look of shock and horror in his face meanwhile Song-su’s expression had not yet changed from its serious look.

”Black." Seong-su said simply. "It doesn't mean anything too upsetting. Not much is known about the black blades because not many who wield them live very long lives." Seokmin's face fell at that, his eyes casting back to his weapon. Could this be an omen? That his time on this earth would be short lived? Did this mean he would never find a way to save Chan?

"As far as I know there is only one other black blade in existence right now. It is held by the wind pillar, and it's said that it is a very strong blade wielded by a very strong young man." Seong-su assured him. "Don't worry too much about it, you're remarkable Seokmin, i'm sure any blade will suit you well." Seokmin smiled at his teacher gratefully and loosened his grip around the handle before turning back to Obi.

"Thank you fo- hey!" He shouted mid sentence as Obi pounced on him and began yanking at his hair roughly. Seokmin held onto his wrists and tried to pry him off of him, shouting for him to let him go. "BLACK?! BLACK?! I WELDED THAT BLADE FROM THE HEAT OF A THOUSAND SUNS, I WAS TOLD YOU WERE FROM A FIRE FAMILY, THAT YOUR COMPLETION WAS TO BE RIVALED WITH THE ACTUAL SUN ITSELF! I WANTED TO SEE A RED BLADE AND YOU GIVE ME BLACK?!" Obi shouted, hitting Seokmin on the top of his head.

"Ow, ow! Obi please!" Seokmin begged. Seong-su sighed in an irritated tone and glanced over at Chan. The young demon seemed to be off somewhere else as he was simply looking up at the ceiling without a care in the world.

A small black mass rushed into the room and began flying around the four men. Seong-su's eyes widened when he saw what it was and it almost caused his heart to stop beating.

"Lee Seokmin! Lee Seokmin! I have a message for Lee Seokmin!" The crow's words shrieked against the walls causing Seokmin and Obi to stop what they were doing and stare at the bird. Seokmin was surprised that it could even talk, how in the world was that crow able to speak full sentences?!

"You are to report to the Hwangnim Village! It is a small village west of here! Reports of a demon lurking in the streets have reached headquarters! A new girl has gone missing every night, it is up to you to save them!" It cawed loudly. "This is your first mission in the demon slayer corpse, take care of yourself and hurry!" It announced.

Seokmin's eyes widened and he looked at Seong-su who wore a grim expression.

"Seokmin, it looks like your time has come."

* * *

"Chan? Chan, where are you we have to go!" Seokmin said, peering into his room. When he didn't see Chan inside his brows furrowed with slight worry and he turned to ask Seong-su if he had seen him. He paused when he saw his teacher standing behind him, Chan standing to his right side.

"What's this?" He asked suspiciously. Seong-su presented a wooden box and held it out towards Seokmin, Chan clapped his hands excitedly as his brother took the box. Surprisingly it was lightweight and easy to carry, he looked to his teacher with happy eyes and smiled.

"It's lightweight so you can carry Chan throughout the day and it will still feel as though he is not inside." Seong-su explained. "Plus, it's comfortable for him to be in."

Seokmin dropped the box and launched himself at his teacher, hugging him extremely tight. "Thank you! Thank you for all you've done for me!" He said happily. Seong-su stiffened a bit but regardless wrapped his arms around Seokmin in return. More than anything he didn't want Seokmin to go, this life was not meant for the weak and kind. It turned kind me cold and it turned weak men dead. He glanced over at Chan who was crawling into the box and getting comfortable and smiled, these two sure were something else entirely.

"Do good things Seokmin, I know you'll be the one to save us all." Seong-su said as he released the male.

Seokmin nodded and closed the box Chan had become comfortable in before swinging it over his shoulder. He turned to Seong-su and the two stood awkwardly for a moment before Seong-su spoke again. "This is the last time i'll most likely ever see you. So, please promise me you'll live." Seong-su said quietly. Seokmin nodded and extended his hand to his teach who took it and the two shook on their mutual agreement.

Seokmin picked up his blade and stepped over the threshold of the doorframe, knowing he was never going to set foot into Seong-su's home again. He cast his eyes back to the forest and closed his eyes to take a deep breath.

Yoongi, Momo, Yeri.....take care of Seong-su. Protect him. He thought as he turned away from the mountain and began his journey to his first assignment as a demon slayer.

Seong-su watched with a heavy heart as his student walked away into the afternoon sun, knowing very well that there was a big chance Seokmin may not live very long with this life path he had chosen. But still, Seong-su hoped he was wrong. He wanted Seokmin to live, he wanted Chan to be human.

And above all, most importantly. He wanted the world to be rid of demons.

* * *

The town itself wasn't anything too big. When Seokmin crossed the bridge into it he was met with rows of houses that were built behind the main strip. Carts of food and trinkets lined the main street as he walked down it slowly, keeping his senses alert.

Strange, they're going on as though their girls aren't in any danger at night. He thought to himself.

"There he is, Eunwoo."

Seokmin stopped and glanced at a couple of older women who were pointing at him. "He and Wendy were walking together last night and Wendy just disappeared!"

"You must be joking, no one just disappears." The other woman argued back.

Seokmin looked over his shoulder and saw a tall male walking slowly down the main street with his head hanging low. He looked tired and defeated, his eyes were red and puffy from obvious crying. Seokmin rushed over to the male and tapped him on the shoulder. "Excuse me, Eunwoo." He said softly.

The tall male glanced back at Seokmin and looked him up and down slowly, not saying a word. Seokmin noted how tired he looked, how defeated he looked. "I would like to talk to you." Seokmin continued. "It's about your fiance, Wendy."

Eunwoo shook his head and continued walking, leaving a confused Seokmin behind for a moment before he jogged to catch up with him. "Leave me alone. Please, I don't want to be made fun of anymore." Eunwoo said sadly.

Seokmin gave him a sad look before stopping which caused Eunwoo to stop as well. "Eunwoo, I'm not here to make fun of you. I'm here to help find Wendy."

At those words Eunwoo allowed Seokmin into his home where he filled him in on everything. How the pair had been walking late at night back to Wendy's home where he would be dropping her off. How the two were so happy and excited for their upcoming wedding, how she was there one moment and gone the next.

"And you didn't see her actually disappear?" Seokmin asked once Eunwoo had finished speaking.

The other male shook his head and looked down sadly, giving out a small sigh. "I wish, I wish I had looked at her one more time. Maybe I would have seen what had happened." He said.

"Don't think like that. I'm sure you've done all you could do." Seokmin replied, patting the male's arm softly. Eunwoo let tears fall from his eyes as he sobbed quietly and Seokmin sighed. He needed to find this demon and he needed to find it fast before another girl was taken. The disappearance of Wendy will have made 8 girls that have gone missing, he couldn't allow it to turn into 9. Seokmin glanced out the window and saw that it was nightfall now, knowing that the demon would most likely be hunting at this hour. He stood without a word and headed for the door, prompting Eunwoo to stand and follow him out silently.

"You said you're here to help?" Eunwoo asked in a small voice. Seokmin glanced back at him and gave him a reassuring smile and nod. "I'm here to put an end to this, and to give you peace for Wendy."

Eunwoo's eyes narrowed as more tears fell from them, he grasped Seokmin's robes and yanked him towards him with great force which startled Seokmin. "How could you possibly bring me peace?! My fiance, the love of my life, she's gone! How could you possibly understand how this feels?!" He screeched.

Seokmin wrapped his hands around Eunwoo's and opened his mouth to ask him to release his grip when he stopped. Taking a deep breath his eyes grew wide when an unfamiliar scent hit him.

The demon!

Seokmin pushed Eunwoo back and took off running, following the scent towards the center of town. Eunwoo ran after him though he found it hard to keep up with the male as he was incredibly fast. Seokmin stopped suddenly and looked around him, the scent seemed to be coming from everywhere around him.

He paused and tried to focus on the smell as it swirled around him, Eunwoo watched with curiosity as Seokmin raised his head and took a deep breath as he unsheathed his sword. That scent....it was coming from...

"Right here!" Seokmin shouted as he shoved his blade into the ground he was standing on. Eunwoo watched in horror as a thick black liquid erupted from the ground like a black swamp. Seokmin gasped when he saw a woman's robes float lightly to the surface and he reached in, wrapping his arms around the female's mid section and yanking her from the murky water with as much force as he could. He jumped back from the water and took deep breaths as he tried to control his breathing.

"Is she?" Eunwoo asked softly.

"Alive." Seokmin finished, looking down and inspecting the female closely. There were no signs of bite marks or wounds, she seemed to still be doing okay thank the heavens. Seokmin's eyes cast up and they met the monster who was behind all of this, a morphed demon!

He remembered Seong-su had told him that other demons would use spells called demon art, these could vary in abilities and give these demons supernatural abilities. Seokmin saw the small cut on the demon's shoulder where he had gotten him though it healed just as quickly as it had been made.

"Where are those girls you've taken?!" Seokmin demanded loudly.

The demon didn't respond, simply grinding its teeth to make a shrill sound that caused Eunwoo to cover his ears in pain. Seokmin clenched his jaw at the sound but ignored it for the most part, his grip on the girl in his arms tightened slightly. "I have more questions for you!" He shouted.

Again, the demon gave no response and just ground its teeth together much to Seokmin's horror, he watched with an open mouth as the demon ducked back under ground and the black water disappeared. "Who the hell was that?!" Eunwoo asked in horror. Seokmin held the female out to him, forcing Eunwoo to take her into his arms. "Eunwoo, hold onto her and stay close by. I need to protect you!" He said urgently.

Seokmin walked slowly down the ally, trying to keep his wits about his while keeping an eye on the two humans behind him. "Her breathing is steadying." Eunwoo said softly. Seokmin motioned for him to remain silent as he tried to figure out where the demon was coming from next. The ground, the wall, up above, he could come from anywhere! But that is where Seokmin knew he stood out, because even if that demon submerged itself into the water it could never erase its scent!

As soon as he thought it the smell hit him and Seokmin's eyes widened, there he was! He turned quickly and held his blade above his head as he moved to the source of the smell. "Total concentration, water breathing!" He said, stepping forward to where the smell was strongest. Just as he'd stepped to where it was the strongest three areas of black water opened up and three sets of arms reached up for Seokmin.

Wait, three? There's three demons?! Seokmin jumped up just out of their reach, fear and confusion adorning his face. Settle down! Settle down and don't let them get the best of you! He thought to himself. "Eight form!" He adjusted his blade, repositioning it back above his head. "Water Basin!" He yelled as he swung the blade down in as much force as possible.

Seokmin remembered what Seong-su had said. That there was only one type of blood that could turn a human into a demon and that that demon has been alive for more than a thousand years. That demon was his family's enemy, and he was probably the only one who could change Chan back into a human. And most importantly, Seokmin remembered the name that Seong-su had uttered to him just before he had left, the name of the male that Seokmin was to find and demand an answer from.

Kim Junmyeon.

It was too shallow, Seokmin's attack only chopped off the arms of the demons and didn't actually injure them in anyway. Dammit! Seokmin knew it was because he switched forms mid-way through, that caused the force of his attack to only be half as rough as he had wanted it to be.

Eunwoo watched from the sides with wide eyes as Seokmin landed back on the ground. He sucked in a deep breath and held the female closer to his chest. Demons? Those girls were all kidnapped by a demon?!

As soon as he had attacked the demons they retreated back underground and Seokmin moved quickly to be in front of Eunwoo again. All three demons smelled the same, nothing stood out from one or the other much to Seokmin's frustration. But demons don't band together, it's like a rule that they all had to stay out of each other's territories. Were they triplet brothers? No....no that's not it. One demon must have morphed into three, this was his blood demon art!

One thing was for sure, Seokmin would kill those demons and protect the humans behind him if it was the last thing he did! The scent was stronger again, he was coming back! Eunwoo gasped when he heard the ground open again and saw a hand reach out towards him, his eyes widening in fear.

"Water breathing, second form...." Seokmin moved his blade and positioned himself in just the right place to protect Eunwoo, a look of determination on his face. "Water wheel!" He swung his blade at the demon, trying to decapitate its head.

The demon grunted angrily but didn't move, causing Seokmin to curse under his breath. His cut was too shallow again, he needed to get it deeper! He swung his sword again and again, missing the demon each time his blade moved. Seokmin watched as the demon ducked beneath the water and the black mass moved as quickly as a snake on the ground until it was positioned a few feet away from him. Seokmin moved back in front of Eunwoo and held his blade in front of him, his chest heaving as he glared at the demon who stuck it's upper body out of the water.

Seokmin knew he couldn't chase the demon too far. If he followed after one the other two could attack Eunwoo and the girl. But he also couldn't do full ranged attacks while guarding them, or he'd risk hurting them as well.

"YOU BASTARD!" The demon yelled.

Seokmin gasped at his sudden words and stared in shock as the demon grew angry at him.

"Would you back off?! That girl will go stale on me!" It wailed angrily. "She's already 17, she's going to lose flavor by the second if I don't devour her soon!!!"

Eunwoo shook in anger behind Seokmin, his fingers digging into the fabric of the girl's robes as the demon spoke such fowl things. He heard the sucking sound of water behind him and whirled around to see the second demon popping its body out of the water behind them.

"Calm down, my other self. There are going to be nights like this, but I have already fed on plenty of girls from this town all were meaty and delicious. I am satisfied." The second half said calmly.

"Well i'm not!" The first argued, causing Seokmin's head to jerk back to the first demon. "I want more, more!" It shouted.

"You're a monster!" Eunwoo shouted. "Give me back Wendy, you took her the night before last, give her back to me!" Both Seokmin and Eunwoo gasped when the sound of the third half ground its teeth above them, causing them both to look up. The first half ground its teeth as well, causing Eunwoo and Seokmin to look at each other in fear.

"Wendy?"

Eunwoo gasped and turned to the second half, his eyes widening as the demon looked like it was actually thinking seriously about what Eunwoo had said. "Who are you talking about?" The second half pulled open its robe to reveal a collection of hair pins, causing Eunwoo to begin crying silently when he saw Wendy's hairpin among them. "If her hairpin is among these valuables, then i've devoured her."

The demons disappeared again and Eunwoo couldn't help the choked sob that came from his throat now that he knew his worst nightmare had come true. Wendy, his beloved was dead. Seokmin's blood boiled as he pictured those innocent females begging for their lives only to be killed so mercilessly. He was so busy being angry with what was happening that he almost forgot to focus and one of the halves emerged from a section of water and reached to grab him. Seokmin jerked out of the way just in time and stumbled backwards to regain his footing.

He swung his blade and got an arm off of the demon but it still wasn't enough to end him, he needed to take off his head. He can escape into the ground too fast, there was no way Seokmin was going to be able to kill him easily. A hole in the wall appeared and Seokmin gasped, he'd gotten to close to it. He quickly flipped out of the way, landing on his feet and out of the way as the demon's arm had reached out.

When he landed on the ground again another hole had appeared behind him as the third half lunged itself out of the dark murky waters and towards him. He turned his head just in time to see the sharpened nails of the demon heading straight for his left eye and he felt his blood run cold. This was it, he was going to die on his first mission.

Suddenly, the door to the box on his back was kicked open and Chan's foot hit the demon right in the face, causing it to spin a few times around and send him flying backwards. The second half of the demon emerged from the ground and glared at the brother duo as Chan climbed out of the box. "Why is a puny human being accompanied by a demon?!" It asked in a shocked tone of voice. He vanished back underground and the third half's head spun back into its normal position before vanishing back underground as well.

Chan looked at the spot angrily until they were no longer in his line of vision and he turned his attention to Eunwoo and the girl in his arms. He walked to them slowly, causing Eunwoo to take a step back as Chan reached towards him and cradled their cheeks softly.

"Chan...." Seokmin said softly.

His brother backed away from the humans and turned away, his eyes training as the third and first half rose from the ground in front of them. _Demons are your enemy, protect all humans_. Chan thought to himself as he began running towards the morphed demon, his expression hardening.

"Chan!" Seokmin shouted.

Chan's leg swung his up into the air, he brought it down his a strong force right on top of the demon in front of him. When his foot came down the demon had vanished back underground and caused Chan to make a deep indention into the hardened ground, much to Seokmin and Eunwoo's shock. Chan looked up and saw the demon chuckling at his confusion from a few yards away, he advanced again, running towards the demon when he heard Seokmin call his name again.

"Don't chase after him! Get back here, now!" He demanded. Without a second thought Chan came running back towards his brother and as he did the ground opened again and Seokmin could see the demon reaching up to grab his brother as he ran towards him.

"Chan! Watch out!" He warned loudly.

The young demon jumped over the other demon easily and continued running until he was standing back in front of his brother with a look of innocence adorning his features. That's right....Chan is a demon now, he no longer has to worry about being hurt like he and Eunwoo had to. Chan isn't so weak that he has to be protected, not anymore. If Chan could watch over Eunwoo and the girl, Seokmin could focus on his attacks and end this once and for all.

Seokmin went to take a step towards his brother but the black water suddenly appeared at his feet, causing him to jump out of the way. Chan sensed another attack and turned quickly, seeing the second half jump out of the water from behind him and lung to attack him. Chan kicked him out of the way, standing between the demon and Eunwoo with a look of determination now on his face.

"Chan!" Seokmin shouted, gaining his brother's attention. "I'm going underground, I need you to protect Eunwoo and that girl, you can do that right?" He asked with a serious smile. Chan's eyes lit up and he nodded in response, crouching into a protective stance in front of the two humans. As nervous as Seokmin was he knew he needed to let Chan handle this, it was the only way this demon was going to be defeated. With a deep breath Seokmin stepped into the black mass and sunk slowly into the water, leaving Chan to deal with the demon above.

The water was murky, it was so hard to see anything immediately in front of him. It was like he was inside of a swamp. The moment his eyes adjusted he saw the robes of the females floating around him, almost like a sunken grave. It was sad for him, all of those innocent girls being murdered....it was unforgivable.

Seokmin's ears picked up the sound of the grinding teeth coming from around him and knew the two other demons were going to work together to attack him. He gripped his blade and looked in determination. Never underestimate him, where do you think he got all of his training? The air was much thinner on the top of that mountain than it was in here!

Not to mention, there are some moves he knows that can only unleash their full potential under the water! He held his sword tightly, bringing it above his right shoulder as the demons neared him. He moved himself just enough, knowing he needed to make a vortex with a violent twist of his upper and lower body! He could feel it, the opening thread that his blade longed for. Total concentration, total concentration!

Total concentration water breathing, sixth form, whirlpool! He swung his body violently as the demons came upon him and swung his blade with the force he needed and severed deep enough cuts to kill them both with one simple swing. As the demons disappeared in front of his eyes Seokmin reached forward, grabbing for something in the dark murky water that floated away from him.

He kicked his legs with great force to bring himself back up, he needed to see Chan and make sure he was okay.

Meanwhile Chan continued to dodge the demon above the ground, kicking and punching him only when he got close enough to harm the two humans. The demon tried to make an escape and go back for his swamp but Chan wouldn't let him. He moved quickly and kicked the demon away from his escape, causing it to slide backwards. Chan chased after him and tried kicking him in the side of the head but the demon was too fast, it pushed his leg out of the way and made three deep cuts on Chan's forehead causing him to let out a painful grunt.

Eunwoo gasped when he saw Chan get hurt, he backed away a few feet as fear seeped through him. If Chan dies, then who will protect him and the girl?! They'll both surely die!

Just as the demon went to drill a hole right through Chan's face Seokmin emerged from the murky water, swinging his blade and chopping off his arm with a single blow."Keep your hands off my brother!" He shouted. Seokmin swung again and removed his other arm, this time neither of them growing back to the demon's horror. No, it couldn't be! The demon thought. My other halves have been taken out, by him?!

Seokmin stood in front of Chan protectively, a serious look across his face as he looked down at the whimpering demon. Seokmin held his sword pointed straight at the demon and scowled, using his free hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. "You stink. Your scent is like rotten oil." He commented. "It stinks to high heaven, how many people have you killed?!" He demanded. 

"Don't blame me!" The demon shouted. "If women live too long their scent goes away and their taste turns foul! I killed them for their own good!" 

Seokmin grit his teeth at these words and swung his blade across the demon's face, slashing his mouth and causing the demon to gag suddenly mid-sentence. "How dare you speak about people like that! Those were someone's lovers, someone's daughters!" Seokmin scolded. With a tsk he stepped towards the demon who backed to the wall in a whimper. "Nevermind." He pointed his blade at the demon again and gave him a serious look. "You are going to tell me everything you know about Kim Junmyeon."

The demon gasped and its eyes widened at Seokmin's words, the scent coming from him changed to one of fear and Seokmin felt himself grow confused. The demon just sat there whimpering, refusing to say anything much to his confusion. "Say something! Talk to me!" Seokmin demanded, bringing his blade to the demon's throat.

"I-I can't tell you." The demon said in a shaky voice.

Seokmin let out a small gasp when the demon said that, his hand almost dropping his blade. Couldn't tell him? Why couldn't he tell him about Junmyeon? The demon continued to shout how he couldn't tell Seokmin anything and Seokmin took a small step back as he watched the demon whimper in fear. But he wasn't afraid of Seokmin, was he? No. He was afraid of Junmyeon.

Suddenly the demon's arms grew back from where Seokmin had cut them off and he launched towards him. Seokmin moved out of the way just in time, slashing his head instantly and causing the demon to disappear. Seokmin groaned angrily at the fact that he didn't get any more information out of the demon before killing him. He placed his blade back into its holder and turned to Chan who was crouched against the wall with his eyes closed and his head down.

"Chan?!" Seokmin rushed to his brother and cradled his head softly. When Chan didn't respond Seokmin realized that he was asleep and that his head wound had now stopped bleeding. So, he sleeps to heal himself instead of eating humans. Seokmin thought. He pressed his head against Chan's and gave a sad sigh. "I'm so sorry, Chan. Wait just a little longer, I'll turn you back into a human!" He promised.

Seokmin gingerly put his brother back into the box and slid the straps over his shoulders, at least now no more girls would go missing here. He turned and saw Eunwoo on his knees in the middle of the street, the female Seokmin had saved was now sleeping propped against the wall next to him.

He walked slowly to the male and knelt down in front of him gently. "Eunwoo, are you alright?" He asked in a soft tone. Eunwoo felt tears fall from his eyes at Seokmin's words and let out a choked sob. "I've lost the love of my life, how can I possibly be alright?" He asked. Seokmin gave him a sad look, feeling his chest tighten at Eunwoo's words. "Eunwoo, no matter how many people you may lose you have no choice but to go on living. No matter how devastating the blows may be, you have to move forward." Seokmin replied.

Eunwoo squeezed his eyes shut and let tears continue to fall down his cheeks, his head hung low at Seokmin's words. "What the hell do you know? A kid like you couldn't possible know what this is like!" He shouted, grabbing Seokmin's robes like he had before this entire ordeal. Seokmin gently held Eunwoo's hand in his own and gave him a gentle smile which caused Eunwoo to gasp, he let go of Seokmin's robes and the male stood up softly.

"I'll be on my way." Seokmin said softly as the sun began to rise over the buildings. Eunwoo looked back down to the ground and Seokmin gently placed his hand on top of his head. "Please take care of this girl, make sure she gets home safely." Eunwoo didn't reply and didn't look up at the demon slayer, when he received no response he reached inside of his robes and pulled out a thick piece of fabric.

"Eunwoo, I hope you find something of Wendy's in here." He said softly. Eunwoo looked up and gasped when he saw what Seokmin was holding out to him. The fabric of the demon's robes that held the hairpins of the girls he'd taken and in the middle was Wendy's white bow. Eunwoo couldn't stop the tears now, taking the fabric and holding it to his heart. Seokmin turned and began walking to the front of the town, taking in a deep breath.

For now, his job here was done, he was happy to have helped these people and bring this town peace.

"I'm sorry!"

Seokmin stopped and turned around to see Eunwoo looking up at him with red and puffy eyes. "For what I said, I'm so so sorry!" Seokmin smiled and raised his right hand to wave at the male. "Please return the rest to the families of the victims, they deserve closure as well!" Seokmin said in a light voice as he turned and headed back to the front of the town.

His crow flew over head as Seokmin left the town exhaustion beginning to take its toll on him as he made his way out of the town. "I need to rest, I might just fall over." He said to himself. His crow landed on his shoulder, startling him back into the presence as it began to speak to him.

"Next! Next! Seoul, rumors of a demon lurking there!"

"What?! Already?!" Seokmin groaned. "Can't we hold on a minute?" He asked. "No! We must go now!" The crow said, clawing at his clothes. "Alright, alright!" Seokmin said, waving his crow off of his shoulders as he crossed the bridge out of town.

* * *

"Please! Please no more!" Seungkwan begged, falling to his knees in the middle of the street. His sparrow flew over his head, pecking at him every few moments and chirping at him. "I can't do this! I can't be a demon slayer! I don't want to die!" He sobbed, tears falling from his eyes freely and snot hanging from his nostril.

"A small village needs your help!" His sparrow chirped again, ignoring Seungkwan's begging.

"I heard you! But I won't go!" Seungkwan shouted, swatting at the sparrow and cowering on the ground. He couldn't do it, he couldn't continue being a demon slayer, he'd die at such an early age! Do people just defect and go rogue? Can he do that? No, no they would definitely find him if he just disappeared.

"Why did I do this, why?" He sobbed. He looked up to the sky and continued letting his tears fall. "Please, please don't let me do this alone."

"Send me a protector."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally an update! I told you guys we would get introduced to another main character in the story and here we are, Seungkwan! Funny enough, he was revealed at the end of the final selection but his name wasn't announced so we didn't know it was him. Hope you guys liked this chapter and are enjoying the story so far, if you have any questions you can ask me on twitter kimetsunoyibo !


	7. Face to Face

_How many people have you murdered? How many innocent people now lay in graves because you chose to kill them and their families?_ These words rung through Seokmin's mind as he made his way towards Seoul at a slow pace. Junmyeon has caused too much death, too many people have lost loved ones because of him. Seokmin had to be the one to defeat him, there was no other option.

The sun had long set and Seokmin had stopped on the side of the road to allow Chan out so he could stretch his legs. The young demon stayed close by his brother's side and held his hand as they made their way towards the city. Seokmin couldn't help but smile at how wide Chan's eyes were when they reached the outskirts of the city, he wished his whole family could be here to experience this moment with him.

"I'm starving Chan, Seong-su gave me some money for food along the way, I think we should stop to get something." Chan hummed in agreement and allowed Seokmin to lead him to an area that wasn't as crowded. A small cart sat under a street light and had no line, Seokmin thought it was a perfect place for a quiet meal. Seokmin was a bit overwhelmed by the advancement of Seoul, he'd never seen such bright lights and tall buildings before. "This is really crazy." He admitted beneath his breath.

He thanked the shop owner for his food and took a large bite, smiling a bit to himself when the warm food entered his belly. He relaxed a bit and closed his eyes in happiness, if only his happiness wasn't so short lived.

A scent hit Seokmin's nose and his eyes popped wide open, dropping the bowl of food on the ground by his feet.

No....it couldn't be. He stood slowly and his whole body began to shake as he looked around in absolute horror before grabbing his sword suddenly and rushing off to his left, leaving Chan resting on the bench by himself.

That scent, of all places to catch that scent it had to be here! He ran between some buildings and back towards the large crowds in the streets, his nose never once dropping the scent. He looked around the people as they walked without a care down the main road and he took a quick right into the crowd, pushing himself through the people who gave him short curses and grunts as he made his way through the dense crowd.

That scent that was so ripe in his nose that it made him gag, he recognized that scent.

It was the scent left behind in his house.

Seokmin followed that scent through the crowd until he could pin point where it was coming from, his eyes landed on the back of a taller man that was walking slowly through the crowd in front of him. This man, this man was the one who murdered his family in cold blood, this man turned Chan into a demon and left him for dead!

Kim Junmyeon!

He reached out and grabbed his shoulder, forcing the taller male to pause and turn around. Seokmin gasped when he saw the demon's face...because it was normal! He wasn't the scary thing Seokmin had grown to recognize as the face of a demon, he looked like a normal human being but with red eyes. But there was no doubt about it, that was the scent that was left behind with his family's corpses, this was the one who turned Chan into a demon.

Seokmin pulled his blade from its holder a few inches before pausing when he heard a small girl's voice, causing him to stop dead in his tracks.

"Daddy?"

He gasped when Junmyeon turned around fully and held a small girl in his arms. What was worse.....the girl was a human?! To his horror a woman came up behind Junmyeon, her face held a kind but confused expression as she looked at the male with her softened eyes. "Sweetheart, what's going on?" She asked softly.

"I'm not sure." Junmyeon replied in a sweetened tone, much to Junmyeon's disgust. How could he go and blend among the common people and his family not notice?! How had he not killed them yet?!

"Do you know him?" His wife asked again. Junmyeon shook his head, still holding his daughter against his chest. "No, as much as I try to remember." He caught eyes with Seokmin, those red orbs locked right with his and gave him a small scowl. "I don't know who this young boy is." As he spoke a young couple made their way past them, seeming to ignore them as they were in their own conversation. While his wife and child didn't seem to notice, Seokmin saw Junmyeon's left hand jut out suddenly and scratch the back of the male's neck.

Seokmin's eyes widened when he saw the man suddenly bend over and place his hand over his neck in pain, his wife stopping beside him and holding his arm. "Sweetie? Is everything okay?" She asked in a concerned voice. With a roar the male looked up at her, baring his sharp teeth and sinking them into her shoulder which caused the woman to let out a scream. Seokmin pushed past Junmyeon and his family in anger, tackling the male to the ground and holding him down as he continued to roar and try to break free of his grasp.

The demon lord took the opportunity to turn with his daughter and wife, quietly urging them that they should get out of the area. Seokmin's grip tightened on the demon beneath him, finally realizing why Junmyeon had done what he had done. A distraction with a demon would cause Seokmin to be forced to deal with it, he couldn't very well leave it roaming the streets....but that meant that Junmyeon could get away.

Dammit! Dammit! He was supposed to kill this guy, not let him get away in one of the busiest cities in Korea!

"Kim Junmyeon!!!!! I swear to god I will find you! I promise you that!" He shouted over his shoulder as the family slipped away. "What is he talking about dear?" Junmyeon's wife asked worriedly. The demon lord pulled his wife closer as they escaped the crowded scene before sighing.

"I have no idea."

Seokmin struggled against the demon, while he wasn't as strong as the other demon's he'd come across he was still a demon non the less. Still, maybe he could save this one too!

"Young man! Get off of him!"

Seokmin looked over his shoulder as two police officers arrived to the front of the crowd and drew out their weapons. Panic started to settle in the pit of his stomach as Seokmin tried to figure out what to do. "Please! You don't understand!" He argued as the male still wriggled beneath him. "He can hurt you! I'm trying to protect you!"

"Sir, I won't tell you again. Let the man go!" The cop shouted.

Looking around into the panic filled eyes of the crowd Seokmin felt hopeless, what was he supposed to do now? He couldn't let the demon go, it would attack and kill so many people! Suddenly a sweet scent filled his nostrils and Seokmin's eyes widened. Visions of beautiful flowers crossed in front of his eyes as he looked around in confusion. Was this an attack? He couldn't tell. His nose picked up on the scent of a demon...no, more than one demon! Different from the one beneath him!

"Leave him with us."

Seokmin's head snapped at the female voice that rang in his ears. He looked to his left to see a pair of female's emerging from the side of the stunned crowd. "Y-you're." He stuttered.

"Demons." The taller one finished, a scowl readable on her face. "Yes."

Seokmin was confused, even more so when he looked down to see the demon beneath him was out cold. How had that happened? What did they do?

"There isn't much time to explain." The shorter one urged. "My blood art can only contain and confuse these humans for so long. Let us take him and his wife, I can help them." She urged. Seokmin stood slowly as the taller one went to collect the bodies quickly. "You should go, you don't want to be in the middle of a crowd when two bodies disappear." The shorter one warned as she picked up the injured female who was unconscious at this point.

Seokmin didn't think twice, he turned and rushed through the crowd and made his escape through an ally way. He leaned against a wall to catch his breath and silently cursed himself. Junmyeon had gotten away, how would he find him again to save Chan?

Chan!

In all the commotion Seokmin had left Chan by that eating cart all alone! He took off running back towards the cart, praying that his brother was okay. He was relieved to see Chan standing by the cart with the owner, who was yelling pretty loudly at the confused demon.

"I'm so sorry!" Seokmin rushed up, apologizing loudly. The cart owner looked at him and scowled angrily. "You dropped an entire bowl of your food and didn't even eat it! And then you run off leaving your mute brother here! Who does that?!"

"Please, i'll pay for the bowl I broke, and I'll take another bowl and eat it entirely!" Seokmin begged, clasping his hands together. The shop owner looked as though he was about to turn him down before sighing and stepping back into the cart to work on another one. Seokmin sighed and slumped onto the bench, his brother sitting next to him. "I'm sorry I left you Chan. I shouldn't have left you here." He said quietly.

"Oi, here's your replacement bowl." The owner called. Seokmin took his food with a bow and handed the male the money to cover the two bowls and some change before turning and eating again. This time no scent hit his nose like it had with Junmyeon, which discouraged him. When he finished the bowl and said his thank yous he took Chan's hand and began walking. "We need to find a place to rest tonight. I'm sure we're both tir-"

"Hey. You."

Seokmin stopped dead in his tracks and looked to the street lamp to his right. The tall demon from before was leaning against it, the same scowl on her face. "H-how did you find me!?" Seokmin asked in surprise. "It wasn't hard. You and that demon reek." She sneered. "Come with me, Irene wants to see you." She instructed with a flick of her finger.

Irene? Who the hell was Irene?

"Wait. The other one? The one who was with you before? That's Irene?" He asked.

The female stopped and sighed loudly before turning back to the confused looking pair. "Let me lay down some ground rules. I had no intention of ever seeking you out after tonight, but Irene insisted that I find you and bring you to our home. You will be quiet the whole way there and you will listen to everything Irene has to say or I will rip your throat out, do you understand?" She growled.

Seokmin gulped quietly and nodded, squeezing his brother's hand.

"Good. Now follow me."

* * *

Seokmin led Chan after the nameless female, as curious as Seokmin was to ask her what her name was he figured he would get a snide comment or something like that and felt it was best to not bring it up.

Chan slumped against his brother, causing Seokmin to pause and adjust his arm so he could lead Chan the rest of the way without any problems. By now they weren't in the deep center of the city, they were surrounded by rows of houses. The female stopped and looked back at the brother duo, sighing loudly in frustration. "I don't have all night, hurry up." She instructed before walking forward.

Seokmin tsked but followed the girl silently, though he grew in confusion as they came to a dead end. He looked around and felt his senses starting to tingle, suddenly thinking that this was a bad idea. Not every demon was like Chan, what if he had just willingly walked into a trap. The female must not have sensed his unease because she ignored his trembling and walked right towards the wall in front of her, and then just disappeared.

Seokmin gasped and stared at the wall, his feet rooted where he stood. How the hell had she done that?! She just disappeared right in front of his eyes!

He jumped slightly when her head appeared to be peering through the wall, glaring at him. "Are you coming?" She snapped, pulling her face back into the wall. Seokmin took a weary step forward, taking a deep breath he and Chan stepped through the wall as if it weren't there. Standing in front of them was a modest house set on a hill and the young demon slayer was in awe. How was something like this even possible?

He followed the girl up to the house and she let them in without a word, once their shoes were removed she motioned for them to follow her into a waiting area and instructed them to wait there until Irene could speak to them. Seokmin was wondering why he didn't feel anxious being in a house with two demons he didn't know, but the scent they gave off was sweet and warm unlike the demons he had encountered to this day.

Chan was looking around the room slowly when Irene appeared, her young face was decorated with a smile as she entered the room followed by her comrade. "Hello, i'm sure Jennie has offered you tea or something to drink?" She asked politely. A look of fear shot across Jennie's face and Seokmin gave a polite smile. "She did but we are fine, thank you." He replied.

Irene nodded and took a seat across from the male, her eyes watching Chan as he touched a few items on their mantel. "You travel with a demon." She stated.

Seokmin wasn't sure how to reply to that, especially since he didn't know what it was the female wanted with him. A slap to the back of his head caused him to come out of his thoughts and back to the present. "Answer Irene when she speaks to you!" Jennie hissed into his ear. "Oh u-um yes." He stuttered out. Irene gave Jennie a stern look and shook her head, prompting the other girl to walk to her side.

"Sorry about Jennie. She's protective." Irene explained. "May I ask why you travel with a demon and why he hasn't attempted to harm you yet?"

Seokmin blinked for a moment before glancing at Chan who was now reaching for Irene, which of course earned a slap on the hand from Jennie and a threatening glare. "Chan is my brother. He was injured by a demon that killed the rest of my family and I vowed to turn him back into a human."

"You're an idiot." Jennie sneered.

"Jennie! Go check on the patients." Irene interrupted. "Yes ma'am!" Jennie said enthusiastically before rushing out of the room.

"Forgive Jennie, as I was saying. You travel with a demon who is your brother, how do you know he will not harm you?" Irene asked curiously.

Seokmin dove into explaining what had happened and how the two had gotten to where they are now, the entire time Irene listened attentively as if his story was the most interesting thing she had heard for a long long time. When he was done Irene stood up and paced in front of him silently, Seokmin wasn't exactly sure what was going to happen at this point. It wasn't until she stopped and looked at him did he see her features were creased, as if deep in thought.

"Seokmin, I need to tell you who I am. I'm Bae Joohyun but I now go by Irene...and I have been on the run from Kim Junmyeon."

Seokmin's eyes widened when he heard those words, could it be the same Junmyeon he was after?

"Thanks to Jennie's blood demon art we are not easily tracked here when it's the two of us, though I'm sure it's harder now that you two and our other two guests are here as well. Aside from that, you need to know how dangerous that man is. He birthed demons and those demons have since consumed humans or turned them into demons as well, and until now he can't be stopped."

Seokmin couldn't help but feel deflated, that wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear. By now Jennie had re-entered the room and had taken a seat, scowling at Chan who was staring absently at the wall.

"I have to stop him. I have to get a hold of him. He is the only way I can find out how to turn my brother back into a human." Seokmin said in a quivering voice. Irene's features changed and she took a seat next to Seokmin, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Seokmin....I believe I can turn your brother back into a human."

His eyes widened when he heard those words. Up until now there had always been a small piece of him that doubted he could turn Chan back, but to hear it from another demon cemented his thoughts on it. He could do it, he could save his brother and turn him back into a human.

"Thank you Irene! Thank you!" He said excitedly. He was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he hadn't noticed that Jennie was now standing behind Irene and had her hand clenching down on her shoulder. "Be quiet! Both of you!" She hissed angrily.

Seokmin watched the sincere smile drop from Irene's face as she turned to scold Jennie but no words were released from her lips when she saw the look on Jennie's face as she stared intently out the front window. "We're not alone."

The young demon slayer felt himself grasp his blade as he tried to figure out what Jennie saw but he couldn't see anyone, he couldn't even smell anyone other than those in this house. "Jennie...there's no one-"

A sudden crash broke out and an object came flying in through the front window, shattering the glass and causing Seokmin to gasp out in surprise. Chan lurched forward and dragged Seokmin down so they were out of the reach of the object. What was this thing? A medium sized ball flying through the air and bouncing randomly, Seokmin couldn't detect its patterns.

"YOU IDIOT!"

Seokmin managed to look up through the hole in the wall the ball had created and his jaw dropped in shock. Outside stood two demons, one male and one female, who had someone discovered this house despite Jennie's demon blood art.

"You got my robes dirty, Nana!" The male scolded as he brushed off the dirt from his robes. Nana rolled her eyes as the ball came back to her hand with ease. She bounced the ball a couple of times and suddenly they turned into two right in front of Seokmin's eyes. How the hell did she do that?! "Relax Baekho, you're being dramatic again." She said with a grin. "Besides, we found what we set off to find right? Master said find the demon slayer with the sun breathing earrings, and that's who we found!"

"I told you it was a bad idea to bring them here!" Jennie hissed down to Irene as she hovered over the older woman. Irene gave the female a stern look but Jennie either didn't notice or chose to ignore it as she shot a glare at Seokmin and Chan. "I can mask us, I can mask the other couple, but you're asking too much of me to mask six people! My blood art isn't strong yet!"

"Now now, It looks like we'll finally move up in the ranks. Master will be pleased that we were able to bring him the head of the sun breather!" Nana grinned as she threw another set of her balls into the house.

It was no use, Seokmin couldn't detect their paths, they would turn at odd angles and he couldn't tell which way they were turning. He dodged one just in time, moving to protect Chan from their destruction.

"You idiot, don't move where they're going!" Jennie scolded loudly as she moved Irene out of the way from being hit. "Can't you see the arrows?!" Seokmin strained his vision hoping to see the arrows that Jennie was pointing out but for the life of him saw nothing. What in the world was she talking about?!

"I don't see anything!" He yelled, his eyes widening as a ball came hurling towards him. He swung his blade fiercely to slice the ball, letting out a gasp when the ball didn't actually get cut but simply bounced off his blade into another direction.

"Oh you are so stupid, here!" Jennie called, holding her hand out with her palm facing him. Seokmin didn't even see anything in her hand but felt as if he had been slapped on his forehead. Reaching up he felt a piece of paper stuck to his forehead and suddenly the room was illuminated with arrows pointing in different directions right in front of each ball. "You have my sight, you can see them now." Jennie instructed as she moved to get out of the path to protect Irene again.

He could see, he could see everything! But where were the arrows coming from?! He looked out to the two demons, Nana was laughing loudly as Baekho held his hands directly in front of him, in each palm was a set of eyes, those eyes had arrows in them! The balls were being controlled by his arrows!

"What now?!" Seokmin asked.

"Now? Now we-" Jennie's words were cut short by a scream let out from Irene. The older demon had seen a ball change its direction and head straight for the younger female, completely decapitating her.

Chan clutched Seokmin's robes as he let out a startled gasp. "Jennie!" He shouted.

Irene held onto Jennie's limp body and cried at the sight of the girl, Seokmin looked back at Nana who was now laughing so hard she was doubled over.This wasn't supposed to happen, but he had no idea how to take back his control, hell he had no control in this situation!

"I'm going to kill them!"

Seokmin's head whipped around when he heard Jennie's voice and he gasped as he saw her head regrowing out of her neck! How in the hell were demons like this?!

"Anyone who takes away my precious time from you needs to be killed! Seokmin, Chan, those two, all of them!" She screeched. Even though the other demon was pissed at him Seokmin couldn't help but crack a smile at her determination, because that is exactly what he needed right now.

He turned and slowly stood up, locking eyes with Nana who now stood alone, he figured the other demon must have gone off to hide somewhere. It didn't matter, because now he knew he could take on these demons since they were no longer working as a unit.

"Seokmin."

Glancing back over he smiled when he saw Chan, Irene and Jennie standing by his side with looks of equal determination.

Jennie gave him a smirk before looking and glaring at Nana who sneered in return. "You find the boy and get rid of him."

"We'll take care of this bitch."


	8. Off With His Head

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Helloooo it's been a minute hasn't it?! 
> 
> Sorry for such a late update, and that it's one that isn't very exciting. But i'm going to be giving you an update on Seokmin and the others in the next chapter which will be coming fairly quickly since this one is so short.
> 
> I really wanted you guys to get a glimpse at Junmyeon as our very own demon lord, since he's pretty freaking amazing lol.

"Daddy, aren't you coming?"

Junmyeon smiled sweetly at the small girl and placed a gentle kiss to her forehead as she was held in her mother's arms. "Unfortunately sweetheart, I have some business to attend to." He assured her.

His wife gave him a gentle frown and she held on to her daughter tightly. "You shouldn't go back out, not after what we saw in the city." She urged him.

Junmyeon gave a small chuckle and caressed the female's face softly. "Like I said, it's just some business I need to attend to. But, like you, I am concerned about what happened just now in the square. That boy must need help and I didn't want our daughter to be there in the presence of danger."

His wife sighed but silently agreed. She didn't want her daughter to be hurt and there not be anything she could do to help her. Still, she worried that Junmyeon himself would get hurt trying to help. "Leave it to the police darling, they can handle it."

"It's more for the boy. He believes that he knew me and I would like to help him."

"Darling..."

Junmyeon gave her a smile and kissed her forehead as well before giving both of them a small hug. "I'll only speak to the police, nothing else dear." He opened the door to the car that waited to take the two females home and allowed them to get in, shutting it softly once they were both situated. His daughter placed her small hands on the frame for the open window and leaned out towards her father with sad eyes. Junmyeon bent down and gave the top of her head a soft pat before looking at the driver.

"Take them home, please." Turning to his wife and child he gave them a final nod as the car took off slowly, his daughter waving at him as they pulled away. He waved in return and watched them disappear back towards their home. The moment they were out of sight that smile he wore on his face disappeared and was replaced with a frown.

He turned and walked in the opposite direction, straightening his expensive coat as he did so before taking a right into a dark alleyway. His shoes made a muffled noise into the pavement as he walked slowly through the darkness, only accompanied by shadows and the distant noises from the city on the other side of the walls. 

That boy....he had no idea who he was. But he needed to die.

The earrings he donned, the same earrings of the sun breather. And he was so sure he had murdered the last of that family line years ago atop a mountain. Could he be a survivor? Impossible, the eldest there had been holding on to their youngest sibling and he was sure the wounds he'd given him were deep enough to kill.

So who was this boy that had those same earrings with the symbol he'd grown to hate, where did he come from?

Junmyeon was so engrossed in his thoughts he hadn't heard the pair of brothers that had entered the ally, one of them dragging along a girlfriend. He barely saw them in time to bump into one who was clearly drunk and slurring on about wanting to continue the festivities at yet another bar.

He reeked.

"Lets hit one more bar, just one more!" The younger begged as his bigger brother followed him closely behind. "Taehyung be careful, are you alright?" The female called from behind the older brother. Taehyung only waved his hand in response, dismissing her concerns. "I'm fine, I could climb the tallest mountain right now!"

He turned and felt his body slam into that of someone taller and was met face to face with Junmyeon.

"What the hell, bastard? Watch where you're fucking going!" He shouted.

Junmyeon stood perfectly still for a moment, not saying anything, and the silence in that alleyway was enough to make just about any sane person uncomfortable.   
"Forgive me." Was all the demon lord said before stepping forward and continuing on his way.

"Hey! Don't just walk away from me!" Taehyung barked, grabbing Junmyeon's shoulder and trying to force him to look him in the eye.

"I am in a hurry, so if you will kindly unhand me." Junmyeon warned softly.

"You think you're better than me, don't you?!" Taehyung slurred.

"Tae..." The female warned but the male ignored her and continued on his drunken ramblings. "You think you're so great with your fancy threads and posh style is that it? You're a nobody just like me!" He said loudly, letting out a booming laugh as he kept pestering Junmyeon.

By now Junmyeon had stopped walking and simply stood still, allowing this younger man to continue talking loudly with each slurred word.

"You and that pale fucking face, you could drop over dead!" Taehyun said and cackled loudly. At his words Junmyeon's eyes grew wide and his expression turned straight cold. How dare he say something like that, to a demon lord!

Junmyeon raised his fist, ignoring the gasp that escaped the female companion's mouth as slammed his fist into Taehyung's face and sent him flying into the bricks of the wall behind him. Taehyung fell silent, his head handing down as his body slid to the ground with a loud thud. Blood trickled into his lap and the female's took a terrified step back. "Taehyung!" She shouted in fear.

Junmyeon on the other hand continued walking as if he hadn't just claimed the life of a lowlife human, why should he stop? These humans were nothing but pests for them to feed off of, they were weak and pathetic. He didn't need to speak to them if he didn't care about them in the first place.

"What the hell did you just do to my brother?!" Taehyung's older brother bellowed as he stepped threateningly towards Junmyeon. The demon lord saw their difference in size, this man was twice as big as he was, but that didn't mean anything to him, not when he was who he was.

"He's dead!"

Taehyung's brother turned his attention to the female who was kneeling by Taehyung's unmoving body. "Taehyung is dead!" She said with a cry.

"You fucking bastard!" His brother bellowed, raising his fist to slam it down onto Junmyeon with as much force as possible. The female gasped when she saw Tae's older brother go flying in the air instead of the stranger. When her eyes landed back on him his leg was raised as if he'd kicked him away.

Impossible! Impossible! There's no way a human could kick someone of that man's size so far into the air! It just wasn't humanly possible.

The body landed onto the ground with a thud and the female let out a shaky gasp at the sight, was he? He couldn't be! She reached a tender hand forward to feel for a pulse but retreated it when Junmyeon came and knelt in front of her. She let out a squeak of fear as he stared at her directly in the eyes and she felt her body run cold. Who was this man?! How had he managed to kill these two with his bare hands in the span of minutes?!

"Does my complexion look unhealthy to you?" Junmyeon asked.

The female clamped her hand over her mouth and she stared into the face of who she could only describe as the devil.

"Is my face too pale? Do I look sickly to you?" He asked in an irritated voice. The female's whole body shook in fear as she shook her head no in response, wanting nothing more than to escape this situation. "What is your name, child?"

The female let her hand drop from her face as she felt tears threaten to fall from her eyes. "Nayeon." She whispered.

"Nayeon." Junmyeon reached out a hand and caressed her face gently, causing her eyes to widen in fear as he did so.

"Do I look like I will die any moment, Nayeon?" Junmyeon asked again.

Small whimpers escaped her throat and Nayeon could only remain frozen in fear at the sight in front of her. Was this it? Was this how she was going to meet her end?

Junmyeon removed his hand from her face tsking to himself as he looked away in an aggrivated way. "Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong."

"I'm a living being who is infinitely close to perfection, I am a god among men." He said, raising a finger and allowing its nail to grow into a sharpened edge. He pointed that finger directly at Nayeon's forehead before plunging it inside of her. With a startled gasp Nayeon felt herself freeze, not being able to move as her eyes remained trained on the dangerous man in front of her.

"What do you think will happen if I keep flooding your body with my blood?" He asked in a cold and hardened tone.

Like acid running through her veins the female felt nothing but pain shoot through every ounce of her body. She grunted and groaned as his blood rushed through her but there was absolutely nothing the female could do to stop it. Her body began to shake as she felt herself burning from the inside out and she was powerless to stop it. The entire time Junmyeon did nothing but watch as she slowly took his blood, he almost seemed as though he was enjoying it. 

"You humans are weak. Your bodies are unable to withstand the speed of transformation." He withdrew his finger and blood trickled from the hole he had embedded into her forehead, his own nail was covered in her disgusting human smelling blood.

Nayeon's skin had turned blue and she continued to gasp for air as she felt her lungs starting to give out. She wanted to scream for help, but wasn't able to make a single sound aside of her gasping. She wished, prayed, that someone would come and find her here. Anyone!

"P-please." She gasped.

"Your cells are being destroyed. Your body is caving in on itself." Junmyeon explained in a bored tone, almost as if he was reading off of a menu. Nayeon's body expanded widely before falling flat and slumping that next to the body of Taehyung and his brother. Without a word Junmyeon stood up, dusting the dirt from his pants and straightening his jacket once again.

He snapped his finger once, glaring at the three bodies as two demons appeared behind them, kneeling in his presence. "Bring me the head of the demon slayer who wears the earrings of the sun breather. Understood?" He asked, glancing back at the two.

"As you wish." Baekho complied.

"Your wish is our command sir." Nana agree, neither one of them raising their head to dare look him in the eye. Then, just as quickly as they had appeared in the ally, the demon pair were out of his sight. 

Junmyeon stood rooted in the spot, anger boiling off of him as if it was all he could think about. Those earrings....that sun breather.....that boy....

That boy was dangerous.


	9. Chan's Individual Strength

Another ball flew in the direction of the four, changing trajectory and instantly hitting both Jennie and Irene and knocking chunks out of their heads. Jennie stumbled back and grunted before grabbing a hold of Irene who was now on the ground. Seokmin was scared but he knew he had to take charge or they would all be killed by this one demon alone. He glanced around to see if he could locate the other demon but didn't see him, not immediately anyway.

"I'm going to kill you and bring your head to my demon lord!" Nana cackled with glee. Seokmin turned to Chan and locked eyes with him to get his attention. "Chan, take care of that other demon that went off to hide!" He said, pointing towards the trees that littered the outskirts of the property line. Chan nodded and ran to go and take care of the other demon, leaving Seokmin to take care of the demon standing in front of him.

"Idiot, you can't take care of her." Jennie groaned from the side. Seokmin ignored her and lunged towards Nana with as much speed as he could muster, swinging his blade high above his head as he moved to cut her head off. Nana moved out of the way just in time, only allowing Seokmin to slice her arm off instead.

Shit! He missed his target. There's no way Nana was going to die easily, she was going to put up a good fight.

Meanwhile Chan had jumped up into the trees and was on his way to locate that other demon who had positioned himself in the trees. He sensed that Chan was coming up on him and felt the young demon kick him harshly with his left leg to try and knock him out of the tree. This made Baekho growl in displeasure and blink his eyes in the palms of his hand, causing Chan to fly backwards away from him.

Seokmin saw a shadow casting over him and turned just in time to see Chan's body land on him and cause both to fall to the ground. "Chan!" Seokmin said in surprise. He cradled his brother in his arms and looked up in the direction she had come from. He wasn't going to get anywhere with this girl, but maybe he could take care of the demon he'd sent Chan after. As long as they weren't together they couldn't be as strong.

Both Chan and Seokmin stood up, Chan facing Nana, Jennie and Irene while Seokmin faced the direction of Baekho. "Chan." Seokmin whispered. "I need you to be brave now, I need you to protect Jennie and Irene." Chan nodded in understanding as Seokmin grabbed his shoulder and squeezed it tightly as the two of them stepped off into separate directions. Seokmin had faith, Chan was a strong boy and he was going to be okay, he knew that much.

Nana squinted her eyes a bit when Chan stepped towards her, letting out a deep throated chuckle.

"Now this...this is going to be fun."

Seokmin gripped his blade tightly as he ran in the opposite direction, his nose picking up the scent of the other demon who was now climbing down from the trees. He was alone, he couldn't team up with the other demon as long as Seokmin kept him preoccupied. He just hoped, for Chan's sake, that they could all handle Nana without him being there.

Irene went to take a step forward, moving to protect Jennie who was still attempting to heal from the previous attacks. Nana glanced over her shoulder at the woman and sneered in her direction. "You think that just because Junmyeon used to cherish you that I give a shit? You're still a nobody to me!" She snarled, throwing her ball with force towards the two females. Chan took the opportunity, running towards Nana as her back was turned towards him and delivering a solid kick right between her shoulder blades.

This sent Nana lurching forward and caused her to miss her ball that was coming back towards her. "Chan, wait don't!" Irene shouted, her eyes widening in fear as she saw what Chan set out to do. But it was too late.

Chan pulled his leg back and moved it in an attempt to kick it out of his way. The moment he moved his leg to kick it a loud snap cracked into the air and Chan let out a loud moan of pain. Nana skipped out of the way and let out an boisterous laugh as Irene and Jennie rushed to Chan's side as he groaned in pain. "Her ball is much too strong for you to kick it, it could break a normal person in half." She scolded.

"I've had enough of this shit." Jennie growled. She stood up and glared at Nana who simply grinned back at her in return. Irene opened her mouth to warn the younger female but fell silent when Jennie disappeared. Nana blinked in surprise when the smaller demon was no longer in front of her, her eyes trying to adjust to see where she could have gone. Suddenly a kick was delivered to the side of her head that sent her flying, when she landed on the ground with a loud thud she saw that the female now stood where she once stood with a scowl on her face.

"You little bitch!" Nana screeched.

Irene quickly scooped the male up in her arms and carried him quickly to the opening by the house. She retrieved a small box from her living room and rushed back to Chan's side who was now gasping in pain. "This will help you heal." She whispered sweetly to the male. Chan couldn't move, he couldn't think because the pain was so much. He looked back as Jennie continued to evade Nana's attacks and Nana continued to grow even more frustrated.

"Chan, you can't get hurt. For your brother's sake." Irene scolded softly.

Sorry, the small demon thought. And he was, he didn't want Seokmin to worry about him and what was happening. He had his own issues with the other demon to be concerned with. Chan realized that Irene was no longer inside but was now rummaging through the rubble. He attempted to move but let out a pained moan when he shifted his leg even slightly. There was no way he could fight and protect Jennie and Irene when he was like this, it wasn't possible.

Irene was by his side a moment later, a large syringe in her hand. "This is just to help you heal faster." She said softly, pushing the needle into his leg without much warning. Chan grimaced at the uncomfortable pain that was brought on by the injection but didn't move, instead he held on to Irene's robes tightly for dear life. When it was all over Chan watched in awe as his leg began to heal quicker than before, though it would still be a moment before he could get up and fight with Jennie.

The female in question was quick to dodge Nana's attacks but even then Nana was a far more powerful demon. Jennie was already suffering from broken bones and she was struggling to keep her head on straight, there was no way she could keep up with these attacks.

As if Nana had read her mind the female was thrown back by one of her balls, causing her to land flat on her back. With the air knocked out of her lungs the female was left gasping as she stared up at the darkened sky. She could hear Nana cackling as she stepped closer to her, but she didn't have the energy to fight back.

Seokmin....please protect Irene...Jennie conjured in her mind, pushing the thought as far as she could to the male. If she were to be finished off like this, then she needed to at least defend with all that she had. Jennie rolled onto her stomach and struggled to stand, kneeling in the dirt as she looked at Nana in the eye. "I'll be damned if I let you hurt Irene, Chan or Seokmin." She said with a struggled breath.

"I will kill you, right where you stand!" Jennie shouted, glaring at Nana with as much hate as she could muster. The older demon couldn't help but smirk at her little outburst, practically laughing in her face. "Then you will die a truly foolish death." She replied, raising her arm high to throw a final ball that would finish her off for good.

Jennie squeezed her eyes shut, knowing that there was no way she was going to survive this. She just hoped that Irene had taken what little time she'd been able to distract Nana and take off to hide in safety. Was it weak of her to act in such a way? Absolutely, but Jennie knew that Nana was far stronger than her and that there was no way she could possibly beat the female.

"CHAN, WAIT!"

Jennie's eyes snapped open when she hear Irene shout, her eyes landing on Chan's back as he had taken a stance directly in front of her just as Nana had thrown her final ball and sent it hurling towards them. "Idiot! Do you not remember what happened to your leg?!" Jennie shouted, reaching forward to try and pull Chan out of the way.

But...she glanced down and saw Chan drawing his leg back and pushing it forward as the ball came closer. She gasped at what she saw next, because Chan kicked the ball directly back and sent it flying past Nana's face.

Nana's eyes widened in surprise as she looked over her shoulder to see her ball caught in the concrete wall behind them. How in the hell did that puny demon manage to do that?!

Jennie staggered back and was caught by Irene who held the female close to her chest. "What....what in the world? How did he do that?!" Jennie stuttered out.

Nana turned back to Chan with a look of pure disgust, throwing another ball at the small demon. Chan however wasn't phased by the look he'd received, especially now that he was sure he could fight against Nana one on one while Seokmin took care of the other.

"You fucking bastard! I will kill you and enjoy it too!" Nana screeched, throwing her ball with as much force as possible. Chan grunted in reply, kicking the ball directly back to the female with ease. Soon the pair were kicking the ball back and forth with such strength it caused the ground to shake a bit with each kick, leaving both Jennie and Irene in awe.

"What the hell did you give him?!" Jennie hissed, looking back at Irene. The older woman shook her head, holding tightly onto Jennie's shoulder as she watched the scene in front of her. "Nothing other than a healing serum. The exact one i've given you before." She mumbled.

The two watched as Chan kicked the ball back with enough force to send Nana stumbling backwards a few feet, causing the demon to growl in anger. "Then how is he so strong? Nothing has changed!" Jennie asked in confusion.

"Jennie....don't you see?" Irene asked in amazement. "What we are seeing here...."

"Is Chan's Individual Strength!"

* * *

Seokmin glared at Baekho across the clearing, despite the demon having his eyes closed he knew that his presence was known. He had to trust that Chan was taking care of the others at this point, he couldn't dwell on their circumstances right now.

"If you knew what was best for you, you would not bother to fight." Baekho warned, holding his hands out towards Seokmin.

Seokmin pondered on this for a moment, gripping the handle to his blade tightly. There was nothing to consider, he had to slay this demon and help Chan do the same with the other.

Concentrate, give it your all!

Seokmin sucked in a deep breath and took a running start towards the male, swinging his blade above his head as he neared his target. He could see it, the opening thread right on Baekho's neck!

With a cry he swung his blade down, following the thread to where it lead when it suddenly snapped in half. Seokmin blinked in confusion, but before he could question what had happened he was pushed back with great force and thrown right into a nearby tree.

He gasped as the wind was knocked out of him, looking up he could see it now. The eyes in the palms of Baekho's hands had arrows in the center, and those arrows were hell bent on sending Seokmin whichever way they pleased.

Before he could have time to think Seokmin felt his body lift into the air and get flung as if it were a ragdoll.

Shit! Shit! How was he going to stop this?! He was being tossed around like it was nothing and he couldn't stop it! Seokmin was flown into another tree, the wind getting knocked out of him and he was dragged up into the air again before being thrown back towards the ground.

No, he wasn't going to be finished like this. No way in hell was he going to be finished like this! Though there was pain shooting throughout his entire body Seokmin knew that he needed to make this quick. He needed to make a move that would blunt the attack he was under, otherwise he was sure to break plenty of bones. He grasped his sword tightly and heaved it high above his head, swinging down with as much force as he could muster.

_Total Concentration, eight form! Waterfall Basin!_

He swung his blade straight down, softening the blow of impact Baekho's ability had set a course for. It was enough for him to be able to pause and catch his breath. And now, as he gripped his blade with as much strength as he could muster, he knew how to weaken Baekho's ability even if it is only by a little bit.

As if his mind was being read Seokmin saw the creepy eyes on Baekho's hands snap shut, sending a pack of arrows in his direction. Seokmin was quick to dodge the arrows as they flew towards him, but he knew until they hit him they weren't going to go away.

"It's all going my way! You're falling right into my trap!" Baekho said happily. Almost immediately he let the eyes in his hands snap shut and he sent an arrow to wrap around the surprised demon slayer's arm. "That arrow is going to twist your arm right off! It's only a matter of time before you're lying on the ground and bleeding out like that punk brother of yours!"

Seokmin's eyes widened in fear when he saw what was going to happen. He couldn't let his arm get ripped off right now, he just couldn't leave Chan behind like that. He had to find a cure, he had to save his brother, he couldn't die here. Without another thought Seokmin ran for the nearest tree and did a quick back flip off, spinning as fast as he could midair, causing the arrow to unravel from his arm.

Baekho frowned in anger when he saw Seokmin land on his feet again without a single scratch, his best technique being foiled but such a young demon slayer was definitely not what he wanted to deal with.

"So, you managed to elude it by spinning in the same direction as the arrow? Fucking monkey." Baekho scoffed.

Seokmin knew he couldn't take much more of his attacks. His body was already weak as it was, any more high quality blows and he was going to be finished fairly quickly. He needed to attack and strike down Baekho, but he couldn't figure out how to get close enough to the demon to do that. He needed to change the direction of the arrow without touching it directly!

"I think it's about time for you to die, filthy scum!" Baekho shouted, launching two more arrows towards the young slayer.

 _Adapt your moves!_ Seokmin urged himself. _Use the sixth form to envelope the arrow like with the demon in the swamp! Then use the footwork of the third form like a dancing river to close in on him!_

Twist, envelop! Put everything you have into your moves!

Twisting whirlpooland flowing water! With those moves put together his sword had become heavy, but Seokmin pushed through, knowing damn well he wasn't going down without a fight. But now his second form was modified, to horizontal water wheel! With as much power as he could muster Seokmin slashed through Baekho's neck and decapitated him with ease.

No way...absolutely not! No way that filthy brat was able to kill him! Baekho had spent years getting stronger thanks to Junmyeon's blood, was all of that really going to go to waste?

Seokmin landed on his side and let out a grunt of pain, the wind getting knocked out of him with such force that it left him hazed for a moment. But he'd done it! He took down the demon alone despite him really wanting to die at this exact moment.

"Curse you! Curse you, curse you!!!!! I was going to be on top! I was going to get closer to Junmyeon and now i'm fucking dying you selfish piece of shit!!!" Baekho shouted angrily as his body began to disappear.

Seokmin knelt on one knee and pointed his blade towards the demon, his chest heaving in pain with every breath he took. His eyes widened in shock when he saw Baekho lift his hands towards him and saw the eyes in the palms of his hands. The arrows......they were pointing in every direction!

"Fuck!" He spat out, Baekho was going to get him!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we get another update! Sorry this took so long to give to you guys, a lot went down these past couple of months.
> 
> I am pretty excited to say though that i'll be starting another fanfic for you guys! If you have read any of my other stories you would know that I had an AOB fic that was joshua centered that I ended up deleting because I wasn't happy with how it was going. Well i'm excited to say that I have a new plot that will be an AOB fic which will be Joshua centered and am going to be posting it fairly soon, I hope you guys end up reading that as well!


	10. A True Demon

Seokmin felt his body get pulled in every which direction.

The arrows shot towards him, launching his body in every direction with great force. He knew he would have to unleash move after move in order to go on the defense or he would surely end up dead.

 _Fourth form! Striking tide!_ He swung his blade to soften the blow as he was hurled towards the hardened wall. His body fell to the ground and he attempted to catch his breath only to be launched through the air again by yet another arrow.

As his body was dragged up through the air the pressure was weighing heavy on his body, making it impossible for him to swing his sword. _Unleash a move! If you don't you'll die_! Seokmin couldn't let himself be beaten by a demon he'd already slain. _Second form! Water Wheel!_

The strike in midair caused him to stop being dragged so high up, allowing the pressure to be released from his body. An arrow shot through his body, pushing him quickly back down tot he ground and causing him to scream loudly. The house was coming back into view, his body was being dragged straight towards the pointed roof that was rushing up to him at an alarming rate. _Waterfall Basin!_

The blow allowed him to miss the house, but his body was dragged back up just as quickly. Every swing of his sword was in pure agony, his body couldn't take anymore and he was sure that eventually he was going to slip up and end up bringing more damage to his body. Making so many consecutive moves wasn't something he was used to, how was he supposed to stop these arrows if they continued to throw his body around like a fucking doll?

No, don't think like that, he thought to himself. Chan still needed his help, Irene and Jennie are probably still seriously injured, he was the least of his concerns. Seokmin swung his blade as hard as he could, attempting to soften every blow that Baekho had left with his arrows. With a hard thud Seokmin was finally left on the ground gasping for breath. He winced when he felt the pain stab into his sides, there was no way he didn't have broken ribs from the beating he'd just received.

"Chan..." He grunted softly. With as much strength as he could muster Seokmin began crawling back where he had left Chan and the others, the only thing on his mind was getting to them and protecting them with all he had...no matter how much he wanted to cry from the pain he needed to get back to the others.

He needed to end this.

* * *

Nana smirked at the three demons in front of her, bouncing her balls against the ground with enough force to make the ground shake a little bit. Chan growled at the female as Jennie stared in fear as dust began to get kicked up by Nana and her toys.

"Shit." Jennie murmured under her breath. With the dust being so thick around them, there was no way she could see the older demon's attacks. When one flew past her face she gasped in surprise, having it barely missing her by a few inches. She moved out of the way just in time for another one to barely miss her again.

"Ridiculous! This is a game meant for children. You act as though I can't locate you any easier!" Jennie shouted, vanishing among the dust and running to try and cut off Nana as quick as possible. Nana smirked as her eyes followed the shadow that moved among the dust, letting out a loud laugh. "You forget you brat, I can see you too!" She called with glee, throwing a ball with so much force that it split the dust around it, forcing it out of the way.

Jennie's eyes widened when she saw the ball heading straight for her head again, getting ready to feel the impact and be decapitated again. She gasped when Chan darted in front of her and kicked the ball out of the way, preventing her from getting hurt a second time.

"Chan?" She whispered softly.

"Don't be foolish!" Irene scolded the young demon. "You may be immortal but that doesn't mean you can be careless, Chan!" She said, giving her best scolding voice that she could muster.

Nana took her moment, throwing as many balls towards the male as she could with as much force as she could and with each one Chan kicked it back with a great amount of force. "My injection gave him nothing more than a quick healing, we're seeing Chan's true power alone." Irene said quietly. "But Nana is a strong opponent, if she were to go all out Chan wouldn't stand a chance."

She looked down at her hands, balling them into fists as tightly as she could. "I have....I have to do something to end this."

Nana cackled loudly and raised her hands high, gearing up to throw another round of her balls again when Irene took a step forward in front of Chan, blocking his view of the older demon.

"You there, answer my one question." She said, speaking loudly and with authority.

"Get the fuck out of my way you bitch, i'll bring back your head and the head of that demon slayer so that my lord will be pleased with me!" Nana shouted.

"Your lord, Nana, he is a coward. Jumyeon is a coward, did you know that?" Irene asked calmly.

Nana growled at the female's words and took a threatening step forward, her threatening stance did little to sway Irene who stood here ground and ushered Jennie behind her with Chan. "The reason he doesn't allow you to say his name? Or why he allows you to eat other demons? It's to prevent you from banding together and attacking him."

"Shut up! Shut up you stupid bitch!" Nana shouted.

"My lord is not that petty! The power he wields is mind blowing, it's completely out of this world!"

Jennie darted her eyes down to Irene's left hand and saw the sweet scent and patterns leaving her left arm, realizing that she was casting a spell. She looked back up at Nana who had continued to spew her anger at the female's words against Junmyeon.

"How dare you say something like that! Not about my lord Junmyeon!" Nana spat with rage. Though as soon as the sentence left her lips a gasp quickly replaced it, her eyes widening when she realized what she had done. Jennie herself clutched onto the cloths of Chan tightly, knowing what was going to be happening next.

Nana dropped her balls and quickly covered her mouth with her hands as her eyes began to quiver in fear. Irene had since lifted her left hand to reveal the claw marks she had given herself that was allowed her spell to spread through the air. "You said his name out loud, haven't you?" She asked with a smirk. "That triggers the curse, you know."

Chan glanced at Jennie with a questioning glance causing the demon to sigh and look back at the horrified Nana. "It's a spell that weakens your target's brain functions, rendering that person unable to lie or keep secrets."

"Nana." Irene's voice cut through the spell, causing the other demon to look at her with tear filled eyes. "I do feel sorry for you, but....farewell."

Nana didn't think twice, she turned and ran away from the trio as quickly as she can, fear filling every vessel of her body as she thought of what punishment was awaiting her now. "Please forgive me, lord! Please forgive me!" Looking up to the sky the female let tears fall from her eyes as she begged for her life to be spared from her fate. "I'm begging you, my lord, please forgive me!" As she begged she felt her body growing weaker and she fell to her knees. A few feet in front of her lay Seokmin who was crawling on his belly towards the scene, a look of confusion adorning his face.

He watched with fear filled eyes as he saw Nana bend over in unspeakable pain, her arms wrapping around her mid section before three hands emerged from her body, two from her midsection and one from her mouth. The fore of those hands caused her body to split in two as blood spurted out of the demon and she fell limply forward.

Seokmin held a horrified stare at the sight, his face matched that of Jennie 's as well. Irene knelt by the now limp body without a word, only a saddened expression adorned her face. "Did....did she just die?!" Seokmin asked as he pulled himself up to his knees. "That's the curse of junmyeon, those who follow under his rule cannot speak his name or they will be killed instantly." Irene explained.

"When demons fight each other it is pointless." She continued. "We can't inflict fatal wounds on each other, therefore we cannot kill each other. Only sunlight and the swords of demon slayers can defeat a demon, however it looks like Junmyeon alone is the only demon that can kill other demons."

Seokmin looked down in saddness, thinking how pointless all of this was when he heard the quick footsteps of Jennie rushing up towards him. She smashed a cloth against his lips and nose roughly, glaring at him. "Don't inhale her sell, it is harmful to the human body. You got that?!" Seokmin nodded quickly and held the cloth to his own face as Jennie dropped her hand, letting out a small sigh and turning back to Irene and Chan.

"Seokmin...she wasn't one of the twelve moon demons." Irene said quietly, pointing at the eyeball that had now fallen from Nana's socket with a slender finger. The twelve moon demons have numbers engraved into their eyeballs, ones who have been demoted have them crossed out as well, she was never one."

The male felt his eyes widen in fear when she said that, his hand gripped the handle to his sword tighter. "They're the strongest demons, right?" He asked softly. Irene nodded and reached into her bag to pull out a syringe. "They hold blood from the demon lord himself, their powers are stronger than any other demon out there." Seokmin swallowed the lump in his throat at her words and shuddered. The simple thought of there being stronger demons than the two they had faced today, that was enough to strike fear into him.

Irene pressed the needle of the syringe into Nana's arm and withdrew a good amount of blood into the syringe. "This should be enough." She murmured, placing the syringe into a small box and putting it back into her bag. Seokmin winced again at the pain from his attack, hunching over from the pain. "Seokmin!" Irene rushed to his side, holding him up so he wouldn't fall over. "Jennie, see to it that he gets medical attention. I'm going to take care of Chan."

She stood up and rushed over to Chan, who was leaning against the side of the house after ingesting some of the spell she had cast. Jennie clicked her tongue silently before glaring down at the male who wore a weakened expression. "Hurry up and stand, daylight is almost here." She demanded, helping the male stand up and leading him back towards the house.

How sad was this? These two demons were deluded into believing they were helping their mentor, it was required of them to fight and now one had died because of this curse while the other died at the hands of a demon slayer. They died for a cause they were never going to survive. Seokmin couldn't help the pain that entered his chest as he felt those thoughts, he wished that in their next lives, those two would live fulfilling lives and in an era where demons did not exist.

Kim Junmyeon, this is how he treats even those that devote their lives to them. That man....he's a true demon!

* * *

When Seokmin opened his eyes he was in a dimly lit room, one he didn't seem to recognize. He sat up quickly and gasped in pain, almost forgetting that he had broken bones from his fight earlier. How long had he been out? He looked around the room to see if he knew where he was, but nothing looked familiar to him. Slowly, he got up from his bed and held his side as he stumbled to the door and slid it open.

The hallway outside held a brighter light and the male found himself squinting to get used to the hue of it. He walked slowly to his left, his ears starting to pick up on low voices coming from a room off the end.

Seokmin slid the door open and gasped at what he saw. Irene and Jennie stood at the back of the room, Irene smiled fondly as Chan rolled around on the floor. "Chan!" He said happily. His younger brother turned, eyes widening when he saw his older brother standing in front of him. The two ran to each other and embraced into a tight hug, leaving a smile on Seokmin's face. "Chan, i'm so proud of you." He whispered.

"We moved you to the basement after we took care of your wounds so Chan wouldn't be touched by the sunlight. We're so glad you're okay." Irene said with a sweet voice.

Seokmin looked to the female with a gentle smile and bowed towards her in thanks. "You have done so much for us, I don't know how to thank you." He said truthfully. Chan turned away from his brother and ran back towards Irene much to his surprise. Chan threw his arms around Irene tightly in thanks, causing the older woman to widen her eyes in surprise. "What the hell are you doing?! Get your hands off of her!" Jennie demanded angrily.

"Jennie, it's fine." Irene replied calmly. She looked to Seokmin with curiosity in her eyes as Chan continued to hug her and pat Jennie's head lovingly. "He's been acting like this since we brought him down here, is he alright?"

Seokmin gave a kind smile and nodded. "He thinks you're probably members of our family, that's why he wanted to protect you." Irene grew confused when he told her this and unconsciously held onto Chan a bit tighter. "I thought he could only see humans as the good guys, Jennie and I are the bad guys."

"He thinks you're humans, or at least he knows you're good people. That's why he thinks you're members of our family, he wouldn't think otherwise." Seokmin explained with a light shrug.

Irene felt tears collect in her eyes as she buried her head into the male's shoulder and let them fall. "Thank you...Chan, thank you so much." She wept softly. "It has been so long since anyone has said I was like family." She mumbled against the fabric of his robes.

Seokmin glanced at Jennie with a shared expression, they both looked gave a small nod before Irene released Chan and the young boy ran back to his brother with joy in his eyes.

"Jennie and I....we will be leaving this region. No doubt that Junmyeon knows we are here now, it's no longer safe. It's probably best for you to lay low as well." Irene encouraged. Seokmin nodded in agreement, holding his brother's hand with a gentle squeeze. "Seokmin." Irene said, cutting into his thoughts.

"Would you like for us to take your brother in? I can't promise his complete survival, but Jennie and and I will do our best to protect him." Seokmin looked at the two females in surprise, not fully understanding what it was that Irene was asking. "It won't be completely safe, I will admit that, but it is better than constantly taking him into battle." She admitted, trying to ease the boy's mind about his decision.

Seokmin glanced at Jennie, who was giving a look of horror to Irene, before looking back at his brother who was clinging to him softly. He had to admit, he knew that it was dangerous to take Chan on every mission with him. He constantly ran the risk of Chan getting hurt like he had today, and they weren't always going to be fortunate to find such kind people like Jennie and Irene. Almost as if Chan had read his mind he felt him grab his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. He locked eyes with his brother and felt a sense of calm fall over him, kind of like Chan was telling him it was all going to be okay.

"Irene, thank you so much for your concern about Chan, truly we owe you a lot more than our lives for all you have done for us." He said, giving her a small bow. "But...Chan and I have already lost the remainder of our family, we've been separated from too many people we've cared about for now. He and I are going to stay together for now, and we're not going to live apart from each other." He said definitively.

Irene gave a small smile and nodded at his words. "I understand completely. In that case, I wish for both of you to live long lasting lives and have success during battle, know that we will always be by your side." She said truthfully.

"Irene, Jennie, thank you so much, I want you guys to be safe too so I wish you well." Seokmin said honestly. "Lets go, Chan." His younger brother nodded and took off running down the hallway towards the stairs, causing Seokmin to look at him in surprise. "Hey! Chan, don't just go running off!" He called, turning to run after him.

"Seokmin!"

The demon slayer paused and turned around at Jennie's voice, looking at the female with wide eyes. "Your little brother....he's a really good kid." Seokmin smiled widely at the young demon who returned his smile with equal energy. "Jennie, you really are amazing!" He called, rushing up the stairs to join his brother.

"Jennie, lets gather our things for now, we need to leave the area." Irene said softly, her eyes remaining where Seokmin had just disappeared to.

Jennie nodded softly, glancing back at the older demon.

"Yes ma'am."

* * *

 _'South-southeast! South-southeast! South-southeast! You next location is south-southeast!'_ Seokmin's crow said in a shrill voice as it flew overhead. Seokmin scowled at the bird and held on to his left ear to protect it from the noise. "I heard you!" He said with a wave of his hand. "Please, I already heard you so quiet down!" The bird continued to fly by his face, barking its orders and ignoring Seokmin's pleas. "Come on, i'm begging you!" He said in a mildly irritated tone.

"PLEASE!!!" A loud voice said, cutting through Seokmin's crow's voice and causing the two to jump. Who the hell has such a high voice that they can actually out do his crow's?!

"Please! Please! Please!" Seokmin looked to the source of the noise, a boy was on his knees in the center of the road, holding on to a girl who clearly didn't want to be in the situation at this moment.

"Please marry me! I could die any day you know! That's why I want you to marry me!!! So please! Please, I'm begging you!"

That boy....Seokmin looked at him as he begged that girl to become his wife. He looked so familiar....Wait a minute! Seokmin's eyes widened when he got a closer look at his robes, of course he knew that boy.

He was a survivor of the final selection!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And just like that we FINALLY get an update lmao. Sorry it took so long for an update guys, but i'm already working on the next chapter! Next chapter Seungkwan finally joins our main cast, who is excited?!
> 
> Also! This fanfic is over a year old! I can't believe it's already been a year since I started writing this story. Thanks to everyone who has been reading it, and I hope you've enjoyed it up until now!


	11. A Monster Lives Here

_'South-southeast! South-southeast! South-southeast! You next location is south-southeast!'_ Seokmin's crow said in a shrill voice as it flew overhead. Seokmin scowled at the bird and held on to his left ear to protect it from the noise. "I heard you!" He said with a wave of his hand. "Please, I already heard you so quiet down!" The bird continued to fly by his face, barking its orders and ignoring Seokmin's pleas. "Come on, i'm begging you!" He said in a mildly irritated tone.

"PLEASE!!!" A loud voice said, cutting through Seokmin's crow's voice and causing the two to jump. Who the hell has such a high voice that they can actually out do his crow's?!

"Please! Please! Please!" Seokmin looked to the source of the noise, a boy was on his knees in the center of the road, holding on to a girl who clearly didn't want to be in the situation at this moment.

"Please marry me! I could die any day you know! That's why I want you to marry me!!! So please! Please, I'm begging you!"

That boy....Seokmin looked at him as he begged that girl to become his wife. He looked so familiar....Wait a minute! Seokmin's eyes widened when he got a closer look at his robes, of course he knew that boy.

He was a survivor of the final selection!

Seokmin's eyes widened when a small sparrow flew quickly towards him, chirping helplessly as it landing in the palm of his hand. Now Seokmin was certain, this sparrow was the same bird that boy had been given at the end of final selection. There was only one question that remained in his mind at this point, what the hell was he doing?!

Seokmin looked at the sparrow as it begged for help, causing Seokmin's face to twist into one of surprise. "Oh you have got to be kidding me." He mumbled.

"I'm begging you please, marry me!" Seungkwan begged the female loudly. His cries were cut short when the back of his robes were yanked and he was pulled away by none other than Seokmin himself. "What the hell do you think you're doing right in the middle of the road?!" Seokmin scolded.

"Can't you see she has no desire to be with you?!" He asked, continued with his scolding as Seungkwan looked at him with tear filled eyes. "And stop making trouble for your sparrow! Can't you see he's stressed out?! You're a demon slayer for fuck's sake, start acting like it!"

Seungkwan glanced down at Seokmin's uniform, his eyes widening when he recognized it as the same one he wore. "That uniform! You're the guy from final selection! The one who defended that girl!"

Seokmin glared at Seungkwan and sneered as best he could at his statement. "No one I Know is anything like you! I don't know who the hell you are!" He yelled.

Seungkwan's eyes widened when Seokmin denied knowing him, causing more tears to fall from his eyes. "BUT- WE MET, REMEMBER? WE MET, REMEMBER?!" He shouted. "You're the one with the problem! You clearly have a bad memory!"

Seokmin dropped his robes and allowed the male to fall onto the dirt floor in a babbling mess. "I'm sorry about all of this ma'am, he won't harass you anymore." Seokmin promised the female. "Thank you so much!" She said with a smile.

"Harass???? I was asking her to be my wife!!! You're ruining my proposal!!!" Seungkwan argued from the ground.

"When did I ever say yes?! When did I ever say I loved you?! For your information i'm already promised to somebody else!" The female shouted as she slapped Seungkwan on the head with as much force as she could muster in her hand. "Ow! Ow! Ow! Please stop!" Seungkwan begged. Seokmin stared from the side with wide eyes and an open mouth as he watche d the whole scene beside him. Finally coming to his sense after letting the boy get beaten up a little bit more he grabbed the girl from around the waist and pulled her away from Seungkwan who was now a crying mess on the ground.

"Alright, he's got the picture! You can go now." He said, ushering the girl away. The female gave him a curt nod before stomping back towards her village, leaving the two males alone in the road.

"Are you insane?! You can't just harass girls and expect them to marry you! Is that how you expect to find a wife and settle down?" Seokmin scolded. Seungkwan looked at his with puffed up eyes. "Husband, wife, it doesn't matter! I need to marry off so I can at least fulfill that before I die!"

Seokmin couldn't even respond, but the look he gave Seungkwan spoke volumes, because it was a look of pure disappointment and disgust.

"HUH?! WHAT'S WITH THAT LOOK ON YOUR FACE?! STOP THAT! WHY ARE YOU STARING AT ME LIKE I'M A CREATURE OR SOMETHING?!" Seungkwan pointed an accusing finger at Seokmin, a look of pure hatred adorning his features. "This is all your fault! You got in the way of my marriage! Now i'm going to die alone!"

Again, Seokmin couldn't be bothered to respond, what the hell was he supposed to say anyway? All he could do was stare at him with the same look as before, the entire time Seungkwan screamed at him he was just giving him the same look the entire time.

"Jeez! Say something!" Seungkwan shouted. "Listen, i'm going to be dying soon anyway during my next job! The thing is, i'm horribly weak, okay? I'm not kidding! You've gotta protect me until I manage to get married, alright?!"

Seokmin couldn't help the small smile that formed on his lips at Seungkwan's ramblings, even though he was a demon slayer he was scared out of his wits, but Seokmin couldn't help but think he had a good heart despite his whining. He placed his left hand firmly on his own chest, giving the other male a stern look. "My name is Lee Seokmin!"

"Oh! Sorry, I'm sorry, my name is Boo Seungkwan, please save me Seokmin!" 

"Seungkwan, what do you mean save you? What was your reason for even becoming a swordsman?" Seokmin asked, placing both of his hands on Seungkwan's shoulders. "Why are you so blatantly shameless?"

"Hey! That's such a harsh way to put it!" Seungkwan argued. "I got swindled by a man and racked up all this debt! The old geezer who took it over for me was a cultivator! Day after day, I had to go through is brutal hellish training, it was so bad that I thought i'd be better off dead! I won't lie, I was hoping I could die during the final selection! But, since I was lucky enough to survive, i'm still going through this hell every day! I'm so scared Lee Seokmin! So so scared!"

Seokmin let his mouth hang open as Seungkwan explained himself, especially since he couldn't believe that was the reason Seungkwan had become a demon slayer, it was pretty sad to say the least.

"I just know that i'm going to get devoured and killed!! There's no way i'm not going to get killed by a demon! My brains are gonna get sucked through my ears while i'm still alive! Please save me!"

Seokmin sighed and knelt by Seungkwan who was now crying uncontrollably on the ground. "What's the matter? Are you okay?" Seokmin had him stand up and patted his head gently. "Come on, walk with me." He said softly. The pair made their way down the dirt road side by side, the entire time Seungkwan silently sniffed from having cried so much. "How are you?" Seokmin finally asked.

"Nw that i'm calmer, i'm starting to get hungry." Seungkwan admitted quietly. "Do you not have any food on you?" He was surprised honestly, how was it he had no food on him at all? "No, sorry." Seungkwan replied.

Without a second thought Seokmin reached into his pockets and pulled out a large dumpling, holding it out for Seugnkwan to have. "Here, take this." He offered. Seungkwan took it was a quiet thank you and bit into the top, feeling better already. Seokmin smiled and looked forward, glad to have made Seungkwan feel a little bit better. "You're not going to eat, Seokmin?" Seungkwan asked after a few moments of silence. Seokmin smiled and shook his head quickly. "No, that's all i've got right now." He admitted with a light laugh.

Seungkwan felt horrible, he was eating all that Seokmin had left. He tore it in half and handed the other half to Seokmin with a shaky hand. "Here, you eat half."

"You sure? Thanks Seungkwan, you're the best!" Seokmin said happily, taking the other half and biting into it excitedly. The two continued on in silence, finishing their food and following the path towards their next destination. Seokmin could only think that this next job had to be a difficult one if both were on their way to the same location.That did little to ease his mind though, what else was he supposed to think about? That everything was all sunshine and daisies right now?

"I know what you mean." He said finally, breaking their silence. "When you say you're scared of demons, I know what that's like. But you shouldn't make trouble for your sparrow."

Seungkwan practically choked on his saliva at those words, he glared at Seokmin before glancing back up at his sparrow that flew overhead. "What the hell does that mean? And how do you even know I have been giving him trouble?!"

Seokmin snickered a bit, covering his mouth as he tried to not laugh to ridiculously. "He says you're always whining, that you constantly try to hit on other people and that you snore so loud he can hardly stand it!" Seungkwan practically dropped to his knees right there, he glared up at his sparrow and was ready to start cursing him out when it occurred to him. How in the hell was Seokmin able to know what his sparrow was trying to say?!

"You understand bird language?!" He asked in surprise. Seokmin simply nodded which caused Seungkwan to stare at him with wide eyes. "No way! You're lying, right?! You're just trying to trick me!"

Just as soon as he'd said that Seokmin's crow began to circle above them, screaming out its orders. ' _Start running! Start running! Seokmin! Seungkwan! Start running!'_

Seungkwan felt his legs starting to shake as he started at the crow flying above them, what else was he going to discover today?! "T-t-that crow is talking!!" He shouted, falling to his knees. "Seokmin! Why is that crow talking?!!?"

"Seungkwan, im going to need you to pull yourself together!"

* * *

Their running was short lived, soon the pair were going at more of a light jog than anything else. Seungkwan's heavy breathing was all Seokmin could hear coming from behind him. "On second thought, i'm not gonna make it." Seungkwan gasped behind him. "Even if I go along, i'm going to be completely useless." He whined.

The scent, it was getting stronger little by little as they came closer. There definitely had to be something up ahead. Seokmin gasped slightly when they came upon a clearing, he could see it through the trees. A house, standing alone in the middle of the woods. Why the hell was it here?

The pair stood outside of it for a moment, taking in its structure as Seokmin tried to figure out his next course of action. "I can smell blood. But this particular scent..." Seokmin murmured softly.

"Wait, you smell something?" Seungkwan asked, glancing at the other male.

"Something i've never smelled before." Seokmin replied.

"I don't know about that, but do you not hear that sound?' Seungkwan asked, holding his hand up to his ear as he looked back at the house. "Also, are you and I gonna work together, after all?"

Sound? What was Seungkwan even talking about, a sound? Seokmin glanced at the male but soon his attention turned to the two young kids at the edge of the clearing holding on to each other.

"Kids? I wonder what's wrong." Seungkwan said softly.

"Hey, what are you kids doing here?" Seokmin asked, walking slowly towards the pair. He could see the fear written all over their faces, it reminded him of Eunwoo when he'd battled the swamp demon, he couldn't help but feel for the two kids. "Okay, do you guys want to see something cool?" He asked, kneeling in front of the two of them. "Ta-da! It's a tame sparrow!" He said with a smile, holding Seungkwan's sparrow in the palm of his hand in front of the kids. "See? Isn't he cute?" Seokmin could see that the kids weren't as afraid of him as before, but they still didn't say anything. Instead they continued to hold each other, every so often their eyes would dart to the house behind them.

"Please tell me what happened, is this your house?"

The older of the two kids shook his head as tears threatened to fall from his eyes. "No. No, it's not." He said in a choked up voice. "This..this house....it belongs to a monster!"

"Our big brother got taken away when we were walking down the road at night, this monster we'd never seen before showed up. It didn't even give us a glance, just our brother." He explained.

Seokmin glanced over his shoulder at the house, now understanding why they had that fear in their eyes when he looked at the house. "They went inside of that house, didn't they?" He asked. The two kids nodded as tears fell from their eyes.

"Did you two follow them here?" He asked softly. Again, the two kids nodded to his question. "You did so good! I know that must have been scary, but you came despite your fears, that's amazing!"

"We followed...we followed his blood." The younger child, a girl, managed to say between her tears.

Blood. Seokmin now knew there was an injured boy in that house, he had to get him out! "I see. Don't worry! We're going to defeat the bad guy and rescue your brother!"

"Really? You really will?" The girl asked in a shaky voice.

"For sure." Seokmin said, standing up again.

"Seokmin...." Seungkwan's voice cut into their conversation, causing the three to turn their attention to the demon slayer that had been temporarily forgotten about. "What is this sound?" He asked softly. "This creepy sound...it never stops, it sounds like a bongo."

"Sound? I don't hear any." Seokmin replied. Then he heard it, the tight sound of a drum being beaten with precision. It beat, three different times loud enough for everyone outside to hear. Slowly the rhythm picked up, increasing in sound with every passing second, almost as if it were trying to match Seokmin's rising heart beat. Then, silence, it stopped almost as quickly as it started, with a body flying from an open window and landing with a loud thud on the ground.

"Shit!" Seungkwan screamed in horror as blood splattered at his feet. Seokmin moved to shield the two kids who had witnessed it all, his heart was thudding loudly in his chest from the scene he'd just encountered. "Don't look!" He commanded. Seungkwan was rooted in fear, his eyes wide as he stared at the body that lay limp on the ground. He didn't even move when Seokmin raced past him to tend to the fallen, kneeling in the blood of the unnamed victim to see if he was okay.

"Are you alright?! Can you hear me?? Stay with me!" Seokmin begged, holding the individual in his arms. The wound was deep, there was no way he could survive something like this. Seokmin felt tears stinging his eyes as he looked down at the male who's eyes continued to look up at the sky.

"E-even though...I got out..even though I made it out....am I going to die?" He asked weakly. Seungkwan clasped his hand over his mouth at the sight, tears falling down his cheeks. Seokmin couldn't bring himself to say anything to the stranger's question. Instead, he brought the body to his chest and held him tightly, whispering words of praise for his bravery as he passed on to his injuries.

When he was gone Seokmin lay him on the ground gently, fighting back his own set of tears. He must have fought hard to get out of that house, no doubt that those wounds caused him a great amount of pain. "You must have suffered my friend. May you find peace in your life after today." He whispered.

"Seokmin...by any chance, is that guy these kids..." Seungkwan started. He was interrupted by a great roar from inside of the house, the roar sent a shock of fear running up his spine and he covered his ears in pain. Seokmin turned to the house with a look of anger and determination. If only we'd gotten here a little bit sooner, we could have saved him. Seokmin shook his head, he needed a clear mind right now and thinking like that owuld do him no good regardless. 

He turned to the two kids who remained huddled together off to the side. "Hey, is this man your..."

"No." The older interrupted. "That's not our brother." He buried his head into the shoulder of his little sister as he cried quietly, not daring to look at Seokmin or the body at his knees. "Our brother was wearing a blue and read set of robes."

Seokmin's eyes widened when he said that before turning and looking back at the body at his knees. So it's taken more than one victim, that's not uncommon but to allow him to leave partially alive? He must have fought tooth and nail to get out of there. Seokmin stood up, looking down at the lifeless boy at his feet with sorrow filled eyes. He clasped his hands together almost like a prayer and bowed his head for a moment. "I promise to bury you when I return." He whispered.

He turned quickly to Seungkwan who had remained rooted in his spot out of fear, his hands still covering his ears as he stared at the house with a look Seokmin couldn't describe. "Seungkwan, lets go!" He urged. The male returned his words with a quick shake of his head, Seungkwan would be a madman to willingly go into a house like that!! 

"Seungkwan, no one else can help them now except you and me." Seokmin explained. Seungkwan shook where he stood, not daring to make a move out of pure terror. Seokmin looked down with a look of disappointment and sighed. "Alright then." He said as he turned to walk inside the house alone.

"W-wait! Come on! Why are you making that ogre face at me?! Okay, i'll go!" He said, holding on to the bottom of Seokmin's robes as he was dragged along behind him. "I have no intention of forcing you to." Seokmin replied simply. "I said I'll go! Please don't leave me out here!" Seungkwan wailed.

Seokmin knelt in front of the siblings, placing the box holding Chan directly in front of them. The pair looked at the demon slayer with wide eyes and questioning looks. "In case of an emergency, I'm leaving this box behind." He explained. "So even if something happens, the two of you ill be protected. " He promised. Without another word he stood up and turned towards Seungkwan with a look of determination. "Okay, we're going now."

Seokmin took long strides towards the front door, Seungkwan following closely behind with silent tears falling from his eyes. The front door slid open with ease and he took a step inside, letting Seungkwan close the door behind them. Seokmin would be lying if he said he didn't feel fear in this moment. he smell of blood stung his nostrils, his mind was racing a mile a minute at the thought of what that boy had had to do to get out of this house alive.

But you're not alone, he thought. He glanced over his shoulder at Seungkwan who was busy looking around in fear and mumbling about how he was surely going to die in these halls. Sure, Seungkwan wasn't the bravest of men but having someone there was better than no one, right?

"Seokmin! Hey Seokmin, you'll protect me, right? You'll be my protector?" Seungkwan cried softly.

Seokmin stopped for a moment and turned to the other demon slayer with a sad expression. "Seungkwa, I hate to put you on the spot, but...I've got a broken rib and leg from my previous battle. And neither are fully healed yet. So-"

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, BROKEN BONES?! DON'T GO BREAKING ANY BONES ON ME! IF YOU HAVE FRACTURES, YOU CAN'T POSSIBLY PROTECT ME! THAT MEANS I'M GONNA DIE!!! WHAT AM I GONNA DO?! WHAT AM I GONNA DO NOW?!?!"

He watched as Seungkwan had his breakdown with a confused look before rolling his eyes a little bit. "Seungkwan, quiet down! You'll be alright."

"Don't sugarcoat it Seokmin! I'm going to fucking die!!" Seungkwan cried out.

"I'm not! I can tell, alright? Seungkwan, you're-" Seokmin looked up and his eyes widened when he saw the young boy and girl from outside come running around the corner towards them. "You shouldn't be here!" He scolded.

"B-but we heard scratching sounds from inside the box!" The boy replied in a scared tone.

"Even still, it pains me that you left it behind. I mean, that box is more precious to me than my own life." Seokmin said sadly as he looked over their shoulders in the direction of the entrance to the house. Chan was in that box, he couldn't just leave that box outside and hope nothing was going to happen to it. Stop! He looked back at Seungkwan and then at the two children that stood in front of him with fear filled eyes.

Chan was a demon now, he was strong within his own right so he could definitely defend himself. As for Seokmin, he needed to focus on his task at hand. He had a child in here that needed help at the very least and now he had two kids and a Seungkwan to look after as well. Crap, he was in a situation he wasn't exactly happy to be in. Seokmin opened his mouth to comfort the children and Seungkwan when a loud thud beat him into making any sort of noise. 

Seungkwan's eyes grew wide as he whipped his head to the left quickly, trying to find the source of the noise. Then there was another loud noise, and another, and another! Almost like someone was stomping around and causing the whole house to shake! Seungkwan stood up quickly, causing his butt to push Seokmin and the little girl into the room on their left. "Oi! Sorry, I have an ass that won't quit." He said quickly, turning to grab on to Seokmin for safety when they heard it again. The sound of that drum being hit out of nowhere, Seokmin's eyes widened when he saw what happened next. 

There's no way, this can't be happening. No way in hell! The hallway....

It's gone!

Seokmin looked around quickly, his eyes wide as he tried to figure out what in the hell just happened. How was something like that even possible?! He held on to the small girl in front of him, her expression just as confused as his was. "W-what happened?!" She asked, clinging to his robes tightly. Before Seokmin could even respond he her they heard it again, the banging of that drum as it was hit repeatedly over and over again. With each hit of that drum the room was transformed into a different one, right in front of their very eyes.

What the hell was happening here?

The girl sniffled loudly against Seokmin's abdomen, bringing him back to reality. "Hey, hey, you know I never asked you, what was your name?" He asked quietly. The little girl looked up at Seokmin with tear filled eyes, sniffling yet again. "Sooyeon." She replied quietly. "Sooyeon, i'm sorry you got separated from your brother, okay?" Sooyeon nodded quietly, her grip not letting up on his robes at all.

"I promise to protect you no matter what, alright?" He asked, wiping her tears away. "Besides, Seungkwan it gonna protect your brother with his life as well." He promised. "So you're going to be okay alright? Don't wor-" Seokmin's eyes widened as a scent hit his nose suddenly. It wasn't a normal scent, not one of a human or of blood. Sooyeon must have noticed too and if she didn't then the stomping of the footsteps drew her attention to the doorway.

Both stared in horror as a giant demon stomped its way into the frame, it had to be the biggest demon Seokmin had ever seen! Sooyeon opened her mouth to scream but Seokmin slapped his mouth right over her mouth. He couldn't risk the demon knowing they were there, he's sure it hadn't noticed them yet. With all of the scents that infiltrated this house, the scent of this demon had to be the strongest of them all! There was no doubt about it.

This demon had devoured a whole slew of humans!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow two chapters in two days?? Crazy, right? I hope you guys like the new chapter, because in the next one we're gonna get a new face to join the crew! Can you guess who it is??
> 
> I had no idea where to stop this chapter lmao, so hopefully it ended well. I'll try to update you as soon as possible!!


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